Resistance
by Takeru 'Hope' Takaishi
Summary: Manda, Andy and Tammy are taken to the refuge of a Resistance camp in the Brecon Beacons. They try to settle into a normal routine, and make allies in Doctors John McDonald and Stephanie Perry. But Andy's memory starts to fade and can everyone be trusted?
1. Prologue

28 Weeks Later: Resistance

Andy Harris - Mackintosh Muggleton

Tammy Harris - Imogen Poots

Manda Simmonds - Samantha Womack

Doctor John McDonald - David Tennant

Doctor Stephanie Perry - Indira Varma

Prologue

The Brecon Beacons had always been quiet, but since the outbreak of the Rage virus, it had become silent. No wildlife lived there anymore, they had either been eaten or had ran away. However amidst the silence of the mountains lay an old castle, a structure once abandoned. But now it was inhabited; survivors who were rescued in the time since infection found refuge here in the Welsh Resistance Camp. It was 3am in the morning and lights out time for the camp. But many of the self-appointed staff were still awake and working.

One of them was Doctor John McDonald, a Scottish GP who had been living in Cardiff for the past three years. He had ruffled brown hair coming off in an erratic quiff at the front, a surprisingly well cut beard and a stylish pair of glasses. His helper, Doctor Stephanie Perry was an upper class English woman who had done a degree in medics and health care. She had curly black hair which she kept in a neat ponytail. The room was lit by a multitude of candles and was lined with beds occupied by many injured people. John was pacing up and down the room, checking on patients, a candle in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.

"Poor buggers." He whispered to his co-worker. "This here one's got a broken leg. I canny imagine the amount of pain he must be in." He stared at the sleeping man's leg and took a sip of his coffee. "Who the hell made this? A fucking donkey?" He showed his distaste, but kept the coffee in hand.

Steph walked over to join him and clung onto his shoulder.

"You just wait until we leave the country, then you can get all the coffee you want." She smiled at him. A happy, yet somewhat strange smile. She had always relied on John for guidance, but lately she had been especially clingy.

"I better, this cheap stuff is disgusting." He smiled back with that charming smile he always gave. The smile that could bring warmth to the most heartless of people. He took her hand and pulled it off his shoulder. "Come on, we've still got work to do." He led her out of the room and onto one of the walkways of the castle.

The cold air hit them as they stepped out of the warmth. All that was visible past the stone wall was total darkness as the only source of light were John and Steph's candles and the moon. Though looking out into it, listening to the silence made the situation Europe was under seem more peaceful. John tried to take another sip of the coffee, but ended up gagging. He threw it over the wall and put the mug down. The wind was strong as they were at least three stories up.

"I'd ask you if you like the view, but there isn't one." He stared out into the darkness and sighed.

"Maybe someday we'll be able to see a proper view" She hinted again.

"Maybe." He zoned out, his mind consumed with thoughts. Thoughts of what would happen to Britain. Would the Americans try and help again? He heard that the Americans were back in Britain again, but killing everything, luckily he doubted they would search the Brecon Beacons.

"Hey, what's that?" Steph tapped on his shoulder and pointed at a little light coming through the trees.

"It's A and B team." He answered. "They went out a few days ago to search for the last few survivors in the country. I wonder if they found anyone."

The light blurred into vision to be a jeep. It powered its way up to the castle and waited at the main gate. John watched as the heavy makeshift wooden gate was lifted and the jeep drove in. His radio started beeping, so he unclipped it and clicked the button on the side.

"Yes General?" He asked.

"Come on John we've known each other for ten months now, call me Matthew." The General spoke with a distinct Southern Welsh accent.

"Yes. Sorry. Matthew." He grinned, but then wiped it off as he noticed Steph sniggering at him. "What is it sir?"

"We have three survivors, one is badly injured. I'll need you to keep an eye on them overnight, okay?"

"Sure, I'll be down to meet them in a minute. Over and out." He clicked the radio off and attached it back to his belt. "Steph stay here and look after the patients, try and clear a few beds free. Cheers babe." He patted her on the arm before jetting off for the spiral staircase at the end of the hospital room. These kind of events excited him, to welcome more people into the little community he had co-founded.

The staircase seemed to go on forever until finally; John reached the bottom and sprinted to the main gate, the anticipation of meeting the new arrivals driving him. Eventually, he reached them. There were three survivors: a blonde woman in a suit, carrying two laptops with her and a few samples of blood, a younger blonde woman in a purple top and jeggings, her face covered in sadness and a young boy with long blonde hair, a blue shirt and jeans. He looked extremely worn out and could barely stand up.

"Who do we have here then?" He asked.

The men helping them in were all wearing black costumes with gasmasks. The main one spoke up. "We have a Mrs Amanda Simmonds, goes by the name Manda, born in Stamford on July 16th 1976. Miss Tammy Harris, born in London on April 19th 1989. And Mr Andrew Harris, goes by the name Andy, born in London on 26th June 1994. Manda and Tammy are in adequate health, but Andy needs urgent medical attention."

"Okay thank you Sir, I'll take it from here." He smiled at the gas masked man and turned to the new arrivals. "Welcome to the Brecon Beacons."


	2. The New Arrivals

Chapter One

Andy looked up at the man who was guiding him, Tammy and Manda. John he said his name was, but Andy's head was so messed up, not much made sense to him. He gathered that they were being led to the medical section of the castle base; judging by his condition, he needed it. He had to fight to keep his eyes open as the darkness of the hallway was visible only through a light coming from a candle which John held. Due to the lack of light, Andy had to keep a constant awareness of what was on the floor as to not trip over on anything. Then they went up a spiral staircase which seemed to go on forever for the twelve year old. The stone stairs were uneven and damp, causing a slight mold to grow on them, in turn causing a foul stench.

When they finally reached the top of the stairs, John pushed open a door revealing what looked like a ward of patients. A woman with her hair in a curly black ponytail ran over.

"You're back." She smiled at John, before noticing the others. "Oop sorry." She shook each of their hands. "I'm Stephanie Perry, call me Steph."

"Manda." Manda returned the gesture. "This is Tammy and this is Andy. Now please, help Andy."

"Steph, can you take Tammy over to a bed and settle her in please?" John asked. His partner nodded. "You two, just come through here." He led them into another, smaller room. It had a small bed in the middle of it and a window on the other side leading to an exit. John laid Andy down onto the bed and lifted up his shirt. He pulled out a stethoscope. "Right, Andy this is going to be very cold." He warned him before pressing it where Andy's heart would be. Listening, he could hear his heart was going at an incredibly fast pace. Then he pulled back Andy's eyelid to notice the burst veins.

"Anything you want to tell me?" He turned to Manda. "Like how this kid is acting normal despite the fact he's… infected?"

"You have to trust me with all this, it's the absolute truth." Manda started to explain. "His blood holds the key to a cure for infection. He's totally immune to the effects of rage. I've taken samples of his blood." She pulled out the vials of his blood. "And I've been extracting the specific enzymes with all the equipment I had. I've come up with this little solution." She pulled out another vial, this time with a clear liquid.

Intrigued, John took the vial off her to have a closer look, licking his dry lips. "Right, I'll need to talk to you in private first. How about on the balcony?" He suggested. Manda nodded in agreement.

"Andy, we won't be long okay? Try and relax, go to sleep if need's be." She smiled and left the room behind John, leaving the boy alone.

As Andy pulled his shirt back over his stomach, the room around him started to feel like it was spinning. His pounding headache had returned. He thought it would go if he slept it off, but he was afraid that if he went to sleep, he wouldn't wake up again. The unthreading stitches in the back of his head didn't help either. He sat up and shook his head to try and calm himself down; all he succeeded in doing was worsening the headache. Once again the only thoughts rushing through his brain were memories of what had been happening lately, but there was a difference, he couldn't remember why he was in Britain. The last thing he knew was he that he was in Spain on a school trip with Tammy. He could remember waking up in the subway with his Sister. And he knew that his parents were dead, but other than that, nothing before the start of April. Not knowing any better, he dismissed it as unimportant.

"You alright little guy?" He heard a female voice ask. He looked up to see the Doctor's partner standing in the doorway. "Stephanie Perry, in case you didn't hear earlier." She sat on the bed next to Andy.

"Um, no not really." Andy replied. "My head's really hurting." To show his pain, he grasped his forehead and strained his face.

Steph reached into a set of drawers and pulled out a little tub of pills. She picked out one and gave it to Andy.

"There you go… Andy was it? Take it with this." She explained as she handed him her bottle of water.

He popped it into his mouth and took a swig of water. "Thank you." He said politely as he handed the bottle back to her. She smiled and patted him on the shoulder, before leaving him alone again. Alone, wandering in his thoughts. He laid back down and stared at the cobweb filled, stone ceiling.

John led Manda onto the walkway balcony that he had been standing on with Steph earlier and placed the candle down on the ledge again. He held the vial in the light of the candle and inspected it again. Its contents intrigued him, could it really be the cure, the cure to all this madness and devastation?

"The cure? The honest to God cure?" He asked again. He couldn't believe the situation he found himself in.

"Well we haven't tested it yet, but perhaps we could try it out here." Manda answered. "And what better test subject than Andy?" Then she realised exactly what she had said. "Erm, patient. Not test subject."

John let out a little chuckle as he thought about the right thing to do. "I agree." He said. "If it doesn't work, there's no doubt Andy will eventually succumb to the virus and die-"

"Erm, how do you know that?" Manda butted in defensively.

"Look at the kid." He replied sharply. "He's about two inches from death. He looks tired, he's lost a lot of blood by the looks of things and he's constantly shaking."

"Good observations." Manda complimented. "You're above average as a paramedic then?"

"I don't like to blow my own, well bagpipes as you can tell from my accent, but I'm pretty good yeah." He grinned and nodded. "I'll try the cure out on Andy, on one condition."

"What?" Manda turned away, fearing the worst.

"You and Tammy attend a meeting the day after tomorrow in my absence. This is going to take better medical expertise than Steph is capable of. Is it a fair deal?" he offered.

It didn't take long for her to come to a decision. "Yeah, that's fair. Just keep him alive, for Tammy."

"I'll do my best, I really will. Now come on, you can stay up here for the night." He assured her and led her back into the main medical room. He showed her to a free bed next to Tammy, who was in a deep sleep. "Now rest up and I'll have Steph show you around tomorrow." He smiled, took Manda's laptop and blood samples and left for his office, where Andy was sleeping.

Manda picked up the soft sheet and pulled it back; the material was the softest thing she had felt in a long time. What with the poor conditions she had been living in. Days after days of scavenging and salvaging anything she could find. She climbed into the bed and pulled the covers over herself. Memories of what had happened to her before she had met up with Flynn, Rhys and the two kids flooded back into her head. She tried shaking them out, they weren't good and if anything they showed her more desperate side. She remembered seeing a man with a gun, pointed at her head. She had screamed at him, _"You're bluffing!" _But he fired a shot into the air to prove it. And which point the Infected had grabbed him, and Manda stole a disc from him. A disc with vital French SOS calls.

She winced and pounded her head until the memories left her head. She was a tormented soul, stuck in a tormented world. Her state was made even worse after the realisation of her husband's part in this whole madness. Which incidentally was traced back to her, so it was all her fault. Or at least she couldn't help but think it was. _Maybe some sleep will help _She thought as she turned over onto her side and closed her eyes. Wishing the world away with them.

"Okay Andy, I'm just going to have to take a sample of your blood." John explained to the boy, who was sat up in the bed with his right sleeve rolled up. He took a needle from a tray on his desk, dipped it in a dish of water and dried it on a towel. The sight of the needle shot a sense of fear down the boy's spine. He had never liked needles, so this wasn't the best position to be in.

"I promise you, this isn't going to hurt one bit. You won't even feel it." He looked at Andy sympathetically then tried to give him some advice. "Close your eyes and count to ten. Before you know it, it'll be over."

Andy looked unsure.

"Believe me, you won't feel a thing. Now close your eyes, okay scamp?"

Reluctantly, Andy nodded, closed his eyes and started to count. Once his eyes were closed, he could think of nothing but the needle. "One." But, tightening his eyes, he tried to think of something else. "Two." He tried to think of things that would make him happy. "Three." His Mum and Dad. "Four." Tammy, them all being together as a family. "Five." Saturday nights sitting with his Dad watching Doctor Who. "Six." Going to the Royal Parks with his friends. "Seven." Summer holidays and the Lake District. "Eight." His Mum's hugs, the warmth and security they would give him. "Nine" Getting on the plane back to England after six months. "Ten." He reopened his eyes to see John wiping the needle mark with some tissue.

"Told you." He smiled at him. To which Andy replied with a weak one. John emptied the contents of the syringe into a test tube and corked it before putting it down on the side next to the other samples of Andy's blood that Manda had taken. Andy rubbed the puncture in his arm; the pain was nothing compared to what he had been suffering for the past month. He rolled his sleeve down and straightened his back and made himself taller to see what John was typing into Manda's laptop.

"What are you doing?" He asked with innocent curiosity, waving his head around to see the screen.

"Erm, give me a minute or two Andy, and I'll explain the best I can." John replied, half listening, half not. He finished typing and saved the document. "Right, so your Mum told me about your infection."

"She's not my Mum!" Andy let out in a half-shout. "Sorry."

"It's okay, it's just a side-effect. I say something wrong and the infection causes you to get angry." He explained. "So tell me, what is Manda to you?"

"Well, I don't really know her." Andy started. "But she's looked after me and Tam for a while now."

"Where did you first meet her?"

Andy sat thinking for a minute, he knew it was recent, but he just couldn't remember. He squinted and pinched his temples. But, nothing. "I can't remember." He said, defeated, slipping off his converse and dropping them onto the floor and pulling the covers of the bed over his legs. It had happened again, another part of his memory was fading away. First the events in the subway, and now his meeting with Manda.

"Can you at least tell me how recent it was?" John asked.

"I don't know." Andy snapped. "Tam said two weeks."

"Thank you." He replied, scribbling it onto a bit of paper on the side. "And how long has it been since you were infected?"

Again, Andy stared into space as he worked it out, counting with his fingers. "A month and a bit." He answered.

John scribbled it down again. "And thank you again." He put the pen down. "Right, kiddo, I want you to do exactly what I say okay?"

Andy nodded at him, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

"I want you to rest for the night, starting after I finish explaining this. I'm going to stay up and work on your blood to synthesise a vaccine. It's gonna take longer as I haven't got any electrical equipment to work with. Then I'll wake you up at 10am and we'll start the recovery process, okay?" John explained.

Andy nodded again and pushed himself further into the covers and pulled them up to his chin. "Goodnight." He smiled to John, who returned the gesture. His eyelids began to slowly close over his eyes, drifting off into sleep. The thought of sleep scared him, he had been having nightmares a lot lately, but his condition made him feel lax and forced him to rest. Eventually, he fell into a deep sleep.

Steph walked into the office and pulled her white lab coat off, hanging it up on the wall next to Andy. She pulled her black top over her hips more and strode over John, who was sitting at the computer. She reached down, pulled out an apple from his top pocket and bit into it.

"Oi!" He slapped her hand playfully. "They only give us one a week you know?"

Steph reached it out to give it to him, but then took it away and bit into it. "Want it back now?" She mocked.

"I'll get you back sometime." He smiled as he got to his feet and stood up straight; he towered over Steph.

_This is the moment _Steph thought as she leant in closer to his face. Her lips almost pressed against his. She had been waiting for a chance to get closer to him for a long time. But every time she tried, he pushed her away. This time was no different.

"And, another thing, they need to give us more water. We're running out." John piped up as he walked over to hang his own coat up.

"What's that?" Steph asked, shaking off the stupidity of the moment. She pointed at the vial of clear liquid.

"This," He started, sprinting back over and picking the liquid up, "is the key to our future. A vaccine that Manda has managed to siphon from the boy's blood."

"You really think it could work?" Steph was intrigued by the idea.

"There's only one way to find out, try it out on a test subject. And we have the perfect one in Andy." He looked at the boy. "I just really hope it works, he doesn't deserve the suffering he's getting."

Feeling neglected and wanting attention, Steph sat down in John's chair. "Then maybe you'll finally get that better coffee."

"Yes and I might also get some peace and quiet. Now go and check the patients, make sure no more have died."

With that, Steph shoved the apple back into his hand and stomped out.

Rolling his eyes, John got back to his laptop.


	3. The First Day

Chapter Two

"Wakey wakey." A voice pelted into Manda's ears. "Come on, it's 8am and breakfast is being cooked." She opened her eyes to see a bemused Tammy also wondering about the commotion. Around them both, the patients still lay in bed and Steph was striding over towards them. "And you two need a wash." She handed them both towels. "If you go through that door there and follow it until you see two shower curtains, you can get a wash there. There'll be two buckets of water for you each, no soap sorry." She smiled and pointed at the door at the other side of the room.

Manda nodded, not quite sure she had registered any of what Steph had said. She focused her eyes and noticed the stone walls of the castle around her for the first time; it had been too dark the night prior. For an old castle, it was in fairly good condition; there wasn't too many crack and the stone looked like it was cleaned regularly. She rubbed her eyes as she squinted at the light.

"Um, thanks." She mumbled and Steph strode off again to John's office. "You awake Tam?"

"Mm hmm." The teen murmured as she lifted her head to reveal her crazy hair strewn everywhere. This prompted both of them to burst into laughter. "We gonna get washed then?"

"Yeah, come on, it's only decent." She pushed her covers off, stood up and stretched. For once, she had had a decent night's sleep and felt refreshed and ready for the day ahead. She went to take off her suit jacket, but realised she left it back in Cambridge. She shrugged it off and waited for Tammy to get up.

Eventually, the teen summoned the strength to rise to her feet, blowing her hair out of her face in a tired, complacent manner. Stretching, she shook her head to wake herself up.

"Come on girl, shower." Manda barked oddly cheerfully and led Tammy to the door at the end of the hall. The musty air of the stony corridors hit them like rotting flesh all the way to the medical washing area. It didn't diminish the sense of realism however; that they're lives had become more normal and safe again. They reached the floral curtains hanging from poles, which were lodged into the castle walls. They made the shape of several shower cubicles. Inside two of them were two buckets each full of water.

"So what, we just get in and tip them over ourselves?" Tammy asked, disappointingly. The prospect of just two buckets of cold water wasn't the most pleasing one.

"I guess so." Manda replied simply and she stepped into the makeshift cubicle on the left. Tammy gave her a bemused look. "What's up?"

"Where are we meant to put our clothes without them getting wet" Tammy asked.

"Put it over the pole when you get in, you dope." She drew the curtain, leaving Tammy to choose what to do.

This reminded Tammy of a time when she was at her friend Zoe's house and the shower was broken, so they decided to have a water fight with a few others instead. She stepped onto the damp floor of the cubicle; grimacing at how dirty is was, whilst taking her shoes off. The dirt on the floor squelched between her toes as her feet landed back down; she threw her shoes aside and took the rest of her clothes off, hanging them over the pole supporting the curtain along with her towel.

"Bugger!" She heard Manda shout from the cubicle beside her. "It's bloody freezing!"

Tammy slowly got the bucket. She could feel how cold the water was through the plastic. She knew the pain it would send through her body when it first hits it, so her hands were trembling with fear. She held the bucket high over her head and screwed her face up, bracing herself. The next few seconds felt like hours and eventually Tammy let the cold water pour over her.

"SHIT!"

After about ten minutes, Steph came striding down to the washing area. Her white lab coat blew back as she walked down the breezy corridor, her stilettos rattled on the ground as they hit the stone floor, her confident smile spread madly across her face. She was always the one forced to show newbies around. All she wanted to do was stay with John. But she found him so awkward to be around; she had spent months trying to get close to him with no result, then that new arrival Manda came in and hit it off with him within minutes. It infuriated her; she was there first, so she deserved John's feelings. It didn't make showing them around a pleasure in any sense.

"Are you two finished?" She called as she arrived; tapping her fingers on the clipboard she was carrying.

Simultaneously, the women drew back the shower curtains and stepped out fully clothed with the towels wrapped around their hair.

"And you can't keep those." Steph retorted. "They're base property and we haven't got many to go around." She held out her hand.

Manda and Tammy looked at each other and rolled their eyes, handing the towels over to her; their damp hair flopped back down onto their shoulders.

"Right thank you, now if you'll follow me, I'll take you down to the dining hall." She smiled professionally and started striding back down the corridor. Beckoning Manda and Tammy to follow.

"I think you'll find you repatriation in Wales will be a good experience, here in this castle, we have solar panels which generate minimal electricity and a nearby river where we collect the water. We have top of the range cooks who have managed to scavenge any remaining food from nearby towns and we also have a little farm area at the back where we do our best to raise all types of meat." Steph gave the speech she knew off by heart and didn't give much enthusiasm at saying it.

Tammy grimaced at the word meat. "Guess I'll be giving that a miss then."

"I'm sorry?" Steph asked, stopping and turning to face the girl.

"Oh, I'm a vegetarian." Tammy replied.

Steph gave her a perplexed look and continue on. "Mind these steps." She said as they approached a stairwell to their left. "They're steep and you don't want to fall down and hurt yourself." Of course, in her head, this is exactly what she wanted.

As they reached the bottom of the stairs, Steph stopped at an archway leading to a courtyard. "Just follow the courtyard to the door over there and you'll be in the canteen, okay? I've got to head off back to John and Andy."

"Okay, thanks for showing us." Manda forced a smile and made off for the canteen with Tammy, leaving Steph to go back to the hospital ward.

As the two of them headed out into the courtyard, they noticed all the people who were around them getting on with their lives as if all was normal. But they did notice that there were no children. Old people were sitting together on benches, couples were out strolling and a man was sitting in the corner with a pad of paper drawing. It was odd and alien to her; she had not seen so much thriving life for almost a year. For Tammy it was easier, she had been out of the country for the majority of the outbreak with her brother and then spent a couple of days in District 1 where the community was unthreatened by infection.

"It may look nice, but Manda, is it safe here?" Tammy pondered as they continued to the canteen.

"Excuse me." Manda approached a blonde woman who was lying on the grass. "Can I ask you a quick question please?"

The woman sat up and squinted her eyes. "Yeah sure." Her voice spoke with a strong Liverpool accent.

"We're new here and I was wondering, what's it like to live here?"

"Compared to living out there, it's brilliant." The woman smiled. "And the Infected haven't found us yet, which is a breath of fresh air. Well, even if they do find us, we have enough firepower to defend ourselves."

"Okay, thanks for that." Manda smiled back and continued with Tammy. "Yeah, I think we're safe."

The pair approached the doorway to the canteen and the many voices of the people eating breakfast came blaring out. Manda and Tammy stepped through the door to be greeted by three long tables going up the room. At the back of the long room were many old stone stoves which must have been used back when the castle was occupied. The two of them slowly proceeded down tables, looking at the people furiously treasuring the little amount of food they had. Despite as happy as that woman had seemed, there was no denying that life was still hard for the refugees. But being as strong as ever, the people were pulling through and seeing the best about things. A trait Manda wished she had. However, she always managed to keep a smile on her face for Tammy and Andy; despite seeing what she had back in Cambridge.

Each of them grabbed a tray and a plate and approached the people serving the food up. Tammy put her tray down and the man placed a sausage and some beans on her plate.

"Sorry, but I don't eat meat." She said calmly. "Could you take the sausage back please?"

The man looked offended at such a remark. "I'm sorry, but it's base policy that you eat what you're given. Don't wanna waste food now do ya?" He blared in a common voice.

"I'm sorry, but surely it doesn't hurt to take one sausage off a plate." She answered back.

"I'm sorry love, but I can't do that. Just give it to someone else. We're told to nourish our residents, so nourish you I shall."

"Come on mate, she doesn't want it on there, clearly. Please just take it off." Manda voiced her opinion.

"Sorry lady, but it's the policy." He kept his ground.

Manda picked the sausage off Tammy's plate, dropped it on the floor and stood on it. "That's what I think of your policy." She smiled and got served by the woman next to the man instead.

"Andy." Andy heard a voice call. "Andy, wake up mate." It kept calling. Slowly, his eyes pried open to see John shaking him gently on the shoulder. He blinked his eyes hardly in a bid to wake himself up and, being a kid, pulled his covers over his head and groaned.

"Oi, get yourself out those covers, cheeky." He had a hospital gown in one hand, ready to give it to Andy. "10am we agreed."

The boy pushed the covers off and stared at the gown in disbelief. "What is _that_?" He exclaimed. "It looks like a nightie!"

John chuckled at Andy's observations and handed it to him. "I know, but it's only procedure. And then we can send your clothes off to get washed. You can get changed in the corner. Steph and I will go out for a moment." He laid it on the bed, patted the kid on the head gently and led Steph out the room.

Andy stared down at the gown. It was a pale blue colour. It brought back even more memories for him, bad ones. He remembered being in a hospital about a year previous in 2006, he had seriously hurt himself and he was kept under constant supervision; he wasn't allowed out the hospital room, except for going to the toilet, he wasn't allowed to do anything without the nurses permission, he was forced to eat hospital only food. He felt so dependent on things. It was possibly the worst experience of his life up until recent events.

He shook the memories away and steadily got out of the bed, standing weakly on his feet, still grimacing at the hospital gown. Why did he have to wear such a ridiculous item? Still, he didn't want to argue with someone who knows what they're doing.

"Finished!" Andy called out after getting changed. He handed his clothes to Steph as the two adults re-entered the room.

"These are going to go on the wash cart; they'll be back with you tomorrow." She smiled.

"But obviously, you're gonna stay like that until the treatment is finished." John added. He picked up a syringe, in which he had placed the clear solution Manda had extracted from the blood samples. "Now back in bed, I'm gonna start the process."

Andy obliged and crawled back under the covers. John sat on the bed next to him and held his wrist, like he had the previous night.

"Now this may not hurt, but it's going to feel a little uncomfortable." He informed the boy. "Just remember, count to ten."

John grinned as Andy shut his eyes and took a deep breath. After his countdown from ten, he felt the needle pierce his skin and the cold liquid which was injected into his blood stream. It felt like his whole arm had gone numb, like it has been encased in freezing cold snow for hours.

"You have to understand, there's no telling what will happen." John explained, passing the needle to a disgruntled Steph. "We've never seen a liquid quite like this before. So we don't know what effect it will have on your body. What does it feel like at this moment?"

Andy lay back onto the pillow and tried to describe it. "Kind of like, erm, pins and needles. I can't anything in it, just sharp pains."

John scribbled it all down onto a piece of paper and passed it to Steph. "Could you take more notes please m'dear? I've got to go and collect our lunches. Since you forgot about breakfast."

Steph nodded and gave him a false smile, shooting him a sinister scowl after he left.

"Right, let's get down to business. What's your full name?" She asked sweetly yet professionally.

"Andrew Harris." Andy answered.

Steph scribbled the information down. "Age and date of birth?"

"12 years old, 21st June 1994."

"Have you had any serious diseases or injuries in your family before?" She peered at his heterochromic eyes before making a note.

Andy thought about his time in hospital the year before again. "Well, there was this one time, but it was last year. The doctor said I had broke my ribs or something. They had pierced my lungs."

"Pierced your lungs?" Steph sounded startled. "You would have been dead."

"They say I heal quickly, something to do with my immune system."

She checked the wound on his shoulder and the gash on his head. "It doesn't seem to be doing you any good now." She thought aloud, writing down all her findings.

"So, what do I do now?" The boy asked, clearly bored.

Steph hadn't thought. He was a 12 year old kid stuck in a small room, drugged up with an anti-virus and nothing to do. "Nothing I'm afraid, John wants you kept under complete supervision. But tell you what, are you hungry?"

Andy nodded enthusiastically.

Steph swung round and threw him an apple. "Don't tell anyone, and definitely not John. I swiped a second one from the orchard yesterday." She winked at him.

He winked back and crunched into the apple.


	4. Andy's First Memory

**A/N - Well, this chapter is going to be completely different from what you'd expect in a 28 Weeks Later fanfic. I was watching the film the other day and it struck me that Andy and Tammy didn't really have a backstory developed, so I thought I'd try and work that into my fic in the shape of three memories given by Andy.I hope you enjoy this chapter and afterwards we'll go back to Infected teritory.  
**

Chapter Three

Night was drawing in over the resistance camp again and the residents were herded off back to the dormitories. Manda and Tammy were now sleeping in the dorm closest to the medical room. The guards had ordered lights out so any source of light around the

castle had been switched off, save a few candles.

The freezing cold air of the night radiated through the castle and Andy lay in the hospital bed with the covers pulled up to his chin in a bid to keep warm. He lay looking at the stone cold ceiling, listening to the wind whistle through the cracks. He hadn't done much in the day due to being under almost constant supervision from either John or Steph. But the antidote had made his body go limp, so there wasn't much he could do.

"Look, I just have a few things to go over with Andy in private." He heard John's voice say just outside the door.

Then he heard Steph. "You know what? Fine. I'll just go to sleep. You can do all the work tonight."

"I'm tired of arguing with you; maybe some sleep will do you some good." He walked through the door and changed his tone. "Evening wee man."

Andy knew the smile was false, he had heard too much to believe it.

John sat down next to Andy. He looked as though he had bad news. "Andy, tell me. Is there any recent events that you can't quite remember?"

Andy knew it, he had suspected something was wrong ever since he had woken up from the coma in Stamford. At first it was the happenings in the London underground, but recently he had started forgetting a lot of when they first met Manda.

"A few yeah." He simply replied. He knew exactly what John was going to say next.

"I'm afraid the virus is starting to inhibit and erase your memories. Technically you're immune to the virus. It won't consume you, but it will try."

Andy nodded in understanding.

"So I'm going to need you to think of a memory. It doesn't matter if it's good or bad, but as long as it's a strong prominent memory, just a big event that will be easy to remember."

"What about my first day at school?" Andy suggested.

"Yeah that could work." John replied eagerly.

Andy thought for a moment. He delved deep into his memories to try and remember it in full detail. It was starting to come to him; he was starting to remember…

His eyes opened slowly and he waved his hands in front of them to focus. Andy sat up quickly and stared over at the calendar; it read _Thursday 1st__ September 2005_. His first day at secondary school. It was incredibly daunting

"Crap." He muttered to himself and flopped back into his bed.

"Andy!" He heard his Mum call up into his room. "Are you up yet?" He didn't reply, too comfy under his warm quilt. "Andy! Andrew Harris, you're going to be late! Hurry up!"

After the last bit, he sprang up immediately. He knew when his Mum used his full name, she meant business. He stretched and yawned and hobbled to the bathroom across the landing. He passed his sister's room, which was shut as usual. No one ever went in Tammy's room without her permission. This was back before the accident, before Tammy realised how much she needed her brother. He reached up and knocked on her door before running off to the bathroom sniggering.

He made it to the sink just in time to hear a shriek and a door slam. After pulling a victory pose, he gave his face and teeth a thorough wash. Usually he'd cheat and not do his teeth, but since it was his first day, he didn't want to make the wrong first impression. He rinsed his mouth out and grabbed a hairbrush.

"Alright Sis?" Tammy mocked as she entered, just as Andy was about to run the brush through his hair, she grabbed it out his hand and brushed her own hair.

"Oi!" He called, jumping to get it out of her outstretched hand.

She pushed him away and finished brushing, then handed the brush back to her little brother and retreated to her room.

He finished the brushing and ran back to his room. Opening his wardrobe, he took out his new black uniform and changed into it. He threw his scarlet coloured pyjamas into the wash bin, closed his bedroom door and ran downstairs.

Waiting in the kitchen for him was his Mum and Dad, sitting at the dining table. His Dad put his newspaper down and smiled at him.

"What took ye so long son? Ye gonna be late for school." Don started. "Come on, get some toast, then I'll give ye and Tammy a lift."

Andy walked to the table and peered at the newspaper, not really caring what it says on there. He picked up a slice of buttered toast and crunched into it.

"First day at secondary school, big event eh?" Don got out of his seat and grabbed his car keys. "Where's your sister? We're gonna be late."

Andy shrugged, taking another chunk out of his toast.

His Dad walked to the stairs and shouted up to Tammy. "Tammy! Come on, we've got to be leaving!"

Heavy footsteps came thumping down into the kitchen and Tammy emerged, her hair straightened. "As if I'm in any hurry to start sixth form. Sixth form equals coursework, and a lot of it."

"Ey ey ey, don't get stroppy with me missy." Don simply smiled in a fatherly manner and ushered her to the door.

"Have a good first day sweetie." Andy's Mum, Alice rose from her seat, kissed him on the head and passed him his backpack. "Remember we won't be here when you get back, so Tammy will walk you home and let you in. Speaking of whom aren't you going to bother to say goodbye, or shall I assume it's that time of the month?"

Andy tried not to snigger at the remark and left the house with his Dad and Tammy.

The drive to the school was an uncomfortable one. The thoughts rushing through Andy's head just made him feel worse. It was bad enough going to a new school, but he didn't know anyone there, all his friends made it into the grammar schools. But the Harris family wasn't exactly rich and couldn't afford it, so Andy and Tammy were sent to the local comprehensive. Many horrible thoughts rushed through his head. What if he got lost? What if he was late for his lessons and got a detention? What if he got on the wrong side of a bully? They weren't helping and made his stomach lurch and his head spin.

Don steered the car into the car park of Chiswick Vale. With every second, the big grey building got closer and Andy's heart forced itself further into his throat. He peered into the school yard and noticed a rather large boy, looked about 15 or 16 with a buzz cut, grabbing another lad by the collar. He pushed him up against the wall and made a fist. Andy, not wanting to see what would happen, pulled himself back into the seat.

"Here you go then." Don hit the brakes and unlocked the doors. He kissed Tammy on the cheek and grabbed Andy and kissed him on the head. "You two behave and good luck Andy. Have fun."

The two of them got out and watched the car drive out of the school gates. This was it, Andy was stranded at school now, for he didn't really know his way back home, it was quite far and he didn't wish to get lost.

His morning had been alright, Andy was starting to gain a bit more confidence at this school. He had made a friend called Charlie Ross and the two of them had stuck together for the majority of the lessons. Charlie had messy black hair and sharp green eyes. He was not much bigger than Andy, and like his friend, seemed like the prime target to be picked on.

The two of them were going through their lockers when they heard the bell ring. Andy looked at Charlie at a loss. Neither of them knew their way to Biology room. Charlie scrabbled in his pockets for the school map all year 7s were given. Out it popped and they noticed that the room they were meant to be in right now, was on the other side of the school.

"Damn, we're gonna have to run." Andy suggested.

"But we're not allowed to." Charlie argued fruitlessly, but he knew it was their only option. "Oh alright."

Andy smiled and slammed his locker shut. But just as he turned and ran, he whacked into something massive. Whatever it was, it was large, hard and it made a loud grunting noise. He looked up to see the large chubby boy from earlier that morning wiping coke off his uniform. His face was hard as stone, it was dripping with rage.

"What the fuck you think you're doing you little bastard?" He shouted at the frightened Andy, who was too scared to move. "No one messes with me."

He pushed Andy against the lockers. "Now you're gonna buy me a new one aren't you?"

"Yeah, you tell 'im Curtis!" The bully's friends jeered in the background.

Andy couldn't speak, he was much too scared. This was exactly what he feared would happen. Not only was he being pinned up against the locker by the biggest guy in the school, but he had also been late for his first Biology lesson.

"Well?" Curtis said through gritted teeth. "It's only two quid."

"I don't have two quid." Andy whispered meekly.

"Speak up."

"I don't have two quid." He repeated, louder.

Curtis pushed him against the locker again. "Well until you bring me two quid, you're gonna meet me here at 3:30. And you're gonna meet me here every day until I get my money. You got me you little girl?"

"Yes, yes, yes I understand." Andy was close to tears.

"Good." Curtis let go of him and pushed him into Charlie. "Hurry up with it then, or things could get very painful. And if you ever tell anyone of this, you're dead." He pointed one of his fat sausage fingers at them and left with his gang.

Both Andy and Charlie sprinted to the biology room. Neither of them wanted to add a detention to the list of things that had gone wrong today.

"And where have you been?" Mrs Butters asked. Her grey hair was tied into a bun and her half-moon glasses sat firmly on her nose. She was sat at her desk sorting through some worksheets.

Andy thought for a moment about what Curtis had said. "Erm, we were in the toilet." He said, realising how rubbish of an excuse it was.

"For twenty minutes? Both of you?" She looked disappointingly at both Andy and Charlie. "Just go and sit down. I'll let you off since it's your first day."

Swiftly, the two of them found seats next to each other on a table near the back of the room. They took out their biology books and pencil cases and threw their bags under the table.

"What am I going to do?" Panicked Andy. He found it hard to concentrate on the lesson after what had just happened. Mrs Butters was talking about the compounds of a leaf, and his head was in a completely different place.

"We could always try and get past there without them seeing." Charlie suggested.

"That'll never work." He answered. "Maybe we should wait until 4 then leave? But I forgot Mum said Tammy is going to walk me home." He was stuck as to what he should do. He deliberated his different options in his head for a few minutes before he came to a conclusion.

"I'm going to have to face him." He said bravely.

Shocked, Charlie tried to talk him out of it. "But you can't. Curtis is too big, he's not known for being easy on new kids either, apparently."

"But if I don't stand up to him, then no one will." Andy ended the conversation. He may have seemed brave on the outside, but on the inside he feared the worst.

Soon, Biology was over and it was time for the students to head home. Charlie, not watching to get involved had hurriedly said goodbye and left. Andy started the long walk to his locker, he had seemed brave discussing it back in the Biology room, but now he knew his idea was stupid. But his Dad had always taught him, the only way to beat a Bully was to stand up to them. And this was him, standing up to Curtis.

Just as he feared, as he approached his locker, Curtis was there waiting for him with his gang.

"Oi Curtis!" He started courageously. "You're not getting the money!"

For a few seconds, it felt like time had stood still. Curtis stood staring at him with an expression of complete disbelief. All that was going through Andy's head was that Curtis would take it as a no and then leave. As if he could be so lucky. The bully ran up to him and grabbed him by the collar, jerking him furiously along the corridor, with his gang in tow.

"Get off!" Andy tried to shout as the collar strangled him.

Curtis threw him into the boy's toilets and grabbed him by the hair. Instantly, Andy knew what was coming. He had seen it in all the films, but he had assumed that kind of stuff only happened in American schools. Curtis clicked his fingers and two of his friends grabbed Andy's legs and lifted them up, to make him fall to the floor. All three of them dragged him into a cubicle and Curtis whispered into his ear.

"You know what I do to little girls who think they have the right to tell me what I can and can't have?"

Andy said nothing.

"Didn't think so." Curtis plunged Andy's head into the toilet.

All Andy could think now was that he was grateful the last guy to have used the toilet had flushed. The water in the bowl was freezing and it hit his face like a thousand needles. His head was kept submerged for about thirty seconds before Curtis pulled it out again.

"You learned your lesson yet? Nope didn't think so." He shoved it back down again. This time, he flushed.

Andy felt the water swirling around his face. Some of it went into his mouth, it tasted foul. Even if it was water, it wasn't exactly the cleanest water ever.

After another thirty seconds, Curtis released him and he fell onto the floor choking on the water.

"Right, you tell anyone about this, you're dead. If anyone asks, you were cleaning pen off your face, got it?" He bellowed.

Andy nodded, coughing viciously on the tiled floor. The gang left the toilet and ran, leaving him alone to try and dry off…

"And how long did this bullying last?" John asked, sounding like a counsellor. Andy was doing brilliantly, considering this was the first night of his memory treatment.

"It happened until about February 2006." Andy strained to remember.

"_That_ long? You're a brave kid to have put up with it. And why did it end?"

"Something he did ended up with me in hospital and-"

"Stop there for tonight mate." John stood up. "I think we've got a good starting point for tomorrow night. Same time, okay?"

Andy nodded in agreement and watched as John left the room.

"I'll see you in the morning. Try and get some sleep." He took the candle out with him.

Andy didn't think he would be able to get to sleep easy. Going through that memory wasn't a nice experience, but he understood that if it helped his treatment work, then he had to do it. But those last words of John's had bugged him. He hinted that they were going to talk about when the bullying stopped, but Andy knew that meant he was going to have to remember one of his most painful memories.


	5. The Expedition

Chapter Four

The next day, Manda and Tammy were up and washed early again. They both had a meeting to attend. On the night they had arrived, Manda had agreed to attend a meeting along with Tammy in exchange for John's services of helping Andy. They didn't know what the meeting was about, but John made it seem important.

They made their way down a breezy corridor of the castle on the way to the makeshift board room. The first day of their time in the resistance camp had been great. After breakfast they had relaxed for most of the day in the courtyard. It had been the most relaxed time for either of them for at least seven months. Manda was enjoying the safety of the base as she had lived on the run from the Infected since September. Finally being in a place in which she was happy wasn't something she was keen to lose anytime soon. The same was for Tammy. Manda was a lot like a Mother to her now, and after the loss of both her parents, that was something she could do with.

Waiting outside the board room was a soldier-like man holding an MP5 machinegun. They approached him and showed him John's security pass he leant them and a note confirming he given it to them. The man nodded and stepped to the side, allowing them in.

The room was dark as there were no windows and it was dimly lit by a couple of candles. Tammy wrinkled her nose as she smelled a musty damp smell in the air, the scent of the candle barely managed to sweeten it. There was a big table in the middle of the room, and sitting round it was four people. The first man, gruff looking with messy black hair and a goatee beard, stood up and shook Manda and Tammy's hands.

"Nice to meet you." He started enthusiastically. "I'm General Matthew Tyler. I'm the guy who leads outside excursions."

"Manda." Manda replied, trying to keep up with his happily shaking hand. "And this is Tammy. We're representing John today as he's tending to a very important patient."

"That's quite fine with me Miss." He replied and took his seat again, offering Manda and Tammy ones opposite him. "Now, we've got two things on the agenda today. I'll start with the first one by handing you over to Chrystelle, our resident techie." He pointed in the direction of a woman of African descent sat next to Tammy.

"Thank you General." Chrystelle said. "We've been hacking into radio signals and have managed to pick up an American message which we think confirms their presence in Britain." She placed a Dictaphone on the middle of the table and pressed the play button.

"…Find the last known survivor…person involved in outbreak…creation of virus…"

The words sent a chill down Manda's spine. She knew that with Clive now dead, she was the last surviving person connected to the outbreak. She hadn't told Tammy yet of course, all in due time. "How do they even know the people who created the virus are still alive?" She piped up.

"They don't." Chrystelle answered. "But they're not chancing it. If there's a possibility that they can find someone responsible, then they are going to try."

"But they can't possibly search the whole of Europe." Manda tried to convince herself it couldn't be true.

"We'll just say this." Tyler said. "If the person is here, then we'd have no choice but to give them up. Luckily, we don't think they are part of our community, so all should be fine."

"But won't they find us?" Tammy asked suddenly.

"They didn't before." Matthew dismissed the topic.

Manda nodded in agreement as Tammy sat in silence listening to all the talk.

"Now I'll hand you over to Gerran and Callum."

This time, the two men sitting next to Manda spoke up. The first one, Gerran, was only about 19 or 20 years old, but seemed to have had a considerable amount of experience killing the Infected. He had his brown hair straightened into an emo fashion and spoke with a strong Southern Welsh accent. As soon as he started speaking, Manda recognised him as the person who had entered the Cambridge Primate Research Facility that night and rescued them.

Callum was much different, he towered over Gerran and had sandy ginger hair tied into a ponytail. He seemed older, in his thirties, but looked only as experienced and confident as his co-soldier.

"Right then." Gerran started his section. "Me 'n' Callum have been sending out a message informing any survivors of our presence."

"And until today, we've had no luck." Callum continued. "We've also received a message from a local village called Derfysgu saying there are four people that are still alive hiding from the Infected."

"So." Matthew leapt in again. "We need to send a dispatch team to go and rescue them. That is down to you Gerran. You'll lead A team with the help of Chelsea and these two newcomers."

Gerran nodded and smiled at the General's decision.

"Well get going as soon as possible. I'll leave the rest down to you." The General added before leaving the meeting altogether with Callum.

After the excursion team was suited up with rifles, they jumped onto the jeep and drove off out of the castle perimeter. Each member of the group was given a gasmask. Gerran had explained that they stopped blood entering the mouth or eyes, preventing them getting infected that way. Tammy thought it made things more uncomfortable and difficult, but who was she to argue with an expert?

"Now listen up." Gerran started briefing everyone. "The family of four is in the

Adwedd Shopping Centre, just outside the village of Derfysgu. We're gonna go in, find them and get out. Don't waste ammunition and try your best not to encounter any Infected." He cocked his gun. "We're approaching it now"

Tammy looked out of her window at the approaching shopping centre. It was massive, something she would use to a get a thrill out of visiting as a child. She looked down at the rifle in her hands. She had never properly used one before, besides shooting her own Father in the head. She could tell Manda had never really used one either, but she realised they both had to just go with it and give them a try. She was determined not to die, for Andy's sake.

The driver parked the car and the three soldiers, Chrystelle, Tammy and Manda piled out into the car park. Gerran started running towards the entrance, his two soldiers and the techie behind him. Manda and Tammy looked at each other and followed.

"Okay, it branches off into two directions. I'm gonna to take Manda and Tammy down the left way and Beasley and Williams are gonna take Chrystelle right. Got it?" He explained.

The group agreed and he pushed the door open. The inside of the building was almost in complete darkness, except for the little amount of light coming from the entrances. Everyone in the group turned on the torch attachments on their rifles.

"If you find anyone. Just buzz my radio." Gerran pointed to the radio sat on his co-soldier's belts. "Now, let's move it." He started going left, beckoning Manda and Tammy to follow him.

"So how come you're the leader, yet you're so young?" Manda asked inquisitively.

"I just excelled in training. And with the world gone into shit, I've gained respect." He replied. "Besides, General Tyler is the real leader; I'm just the leader of A team."

"Don't you have any family you feel you need to stay and take care of?" Asked Tammy, curious as he hadn't mentioned any.

"Family just slow you down." He blurted out quickly. "Mine did, and I had to accept that fact, just as you two do."

Tammy shot a look of shock at Manda, who returned it; maybe she shouldn't have asked. She of all people should have known that family was a sensitive subject.

Because of the lack of light, none of them could see anything, except for the paths of light coming from their torches. The smell wasn't pleasant though, it made the damp smell of the castle seem like flowers. It was a smell of rotting flesh. Gerran lowered his gun to shine the torch on the floor. He expected to see skeletons and bits of clothes, but what he saw was much worse. Lying in front of them were several freshly killed bodies and blood smeared across the floor nearby.

Tammy knew this could mean only one thing, there were Infected in the building as well as them and they still hadn't found the family.

"They're in here with us?" She shouted.

"Shut up!" Gerran spoke quietly into her ear as he grabbed her mouth to keep her quiet.

Manda yanked him off of Tammy. "Don't handle her like that! There's no need to be so rough!"

"I'm being practical and tactical. Now keep moving. If you hear one of them, turn the torch off and the night sight on."

Each of the shops had the shutters down and only a little amount of light could be shone in to see if the family were there. Manda noticed the shutters for HMV were still open and pointed it out to the other two. Gerran gave her the thumbs up and led them to the shop doors. He peered through them, before slowly pushing them open.

"'Ello." He called "We got your distress call."

There was no answer. He signalled for the women to follow him. They did so, guns raised. Manda shone the torch over some of the DVDs. She read the titles of the latest releases before the outbreak. _Poseidon, Silent Hill, Scary Movie 4 and V for Vendetta_. There was never going to be another movie released in Britain, never ever. Infection was too severe and somehow the Infected must have adapted to eat to survive. And likewise, there would never be a new book, or a new TV show, it was such a depressing thought. But one everyone would have to accept.

"Will you stop mooching around and hurry up?" Gerran's voice broke her thought.

Suddenly, he heard the noise of a snarling animal.

"All lights off!" He ordered.

All three of them turned the torches off the guns and used the night sight. As Manda looked through the scope, all she could see was green. Everything looked green, she had never handled a rifle before, only handguns, but the principle was the same. Just aim and shoot. She softened her breathing, trying not to alert any of the Infected.

If any of them were to make the slightest noise, they would give away where they were and get them all killed. Tammy looked through her night sight outside the shop and saw three Infected run past it quickly, blind to the three of them standing in HMV. As they left, she let her breath out that she had been holding.

"Okay, I don't think the survivors could still in this situation, but we've got to keep looking." Gerran said, finally.

"We can't go looking when there's Infected about." Manda argued.

"Have you seen what you're holding?"

"But if we shoot anything, we'll alert all of them."

"We're looking. That is all!" Gerran finished the conversation. "Now you follow me and keep to your night sights."

He led them back into the corridor and double checked that they kept their torches off. He looked through his night sight and made sure there was no Infected. This operation was a risky one, but he knew there could be lives at stake, and he wasn't willing to go without at least a quick search for them. But in the total darkness, it was near impossible to keep searching.

Eventually, they approached a set of stairs. They led both up and down. Gerran aimed his gun at the sign reading where the stairs led. It read _Floor Two: Clothing and Sports. Basement: Employees Only. _Thinking it through, he decided that they should split up.

"Right, I'm gonna try the basement, you two, go upstairs and check each of the shops with the shutters up." He briefed his plan.

"Okay." Manda replied simply, she knew there was no point arguing with him, he was the leader of the expedition and they weren't even meant to be there. She watched as Gerran took the stairs on the right and she led Tammy up the stairs on the left. She aimed the gun at the floor every now and again to make sure it was clear for them to walk on.

Each of the shops that they would look at through their scopes had the shutters down. Tammy was sure the survivors were not still alive. Or if they were still alive, they were probably infected. She didn't think there was any point in continuing to look, but she knew that they couldn't leave without Gerran and he was in charge.

She would have thought that the place would lay in silence, but all that could be heard was the screams of the Infected. The constant animalistic growls drowned out all sounds, and neither Tammy nor Manda wanted to alert the Infected, so they didn't speak and trod lightly. She wondered if what they were doing now was worth the agreement Manda had made with John, she thought that given the right equipment, Manda would have been able to help Andy, but then it was best not to risk it.

But then she remembered. There must be someone else in here. When they first arrived, all had been silent. And now the Infected had been alerted. It might have been the other three who had gone down the right side, but there was always a chance it was the survivors they were looking for.

"Manda." She went to tell her what she had thought. But there was no answer.

"Manda." She said again, slightly louder. There was still no answer. She looked all around her, but in the tiny scope she couldn't see much. All she knew was Manda was nowhere to be seen. But how could they have gotten split up, could it have been the constant noise of the Infected? She was terrified and alone and she knew if she shouted, she would only expose her position. She had to try and continue on her own.

"Get your arses over here!" Chrystelle screamed at the two members of A team she had partnered with. All three of them were running down through the shop, looking for any of them with the shutters up.

"Why are they chasing us?" The soldier to the left of Chrystelle asked in a goofy fashion.

"Well, you knob, if you hadn't shone the bloody torch in its face we wouldn't be getting chased. Now keep looking!" Exasperated, she shone her gun in front of her and saw that Woolworths was the only shop with the shutters up. She ran for it, not caring if the other two would notice. All she cared about was making sure she was safe.

Woolworths was getting closer and closer and Chrystelle could feel herself getting more out of breath. She noticed that one of the soldiers was lagging behind, but she couldn't risk waiting. It was a matter of life or death.

"Come on!" She screamed.

"Wait! Please!" The soldier called back.

But Chrystelle and the other soldier didn't listen, they didn't want to listen. They just kept running, running as fast as their legs would allow them to. Woolworths was in reach and the first two of them were almost there. However, the Infected were getting closer and closer, easily catching up to the now tired group. They had now overtaken the last soldier, who had lagged behind; they seemed more focused on getting the two runners.

Chrystelle's heart dropped as she felt something grab her arm. She dropped her gun in shock and heard the soldier who had ran with her yelp loudly. Time seemed to go slowly as she watched her team mate get ripped apart by one of the Infected. In a moment of strength, she wrenched her arm free, grabbed the Infected's head and twisted it. She heard the bones crack and leaped past the threshold into Woolworths.

She desperately grabbed the shutters and slammed them down towards the ground, locking them in place, leaving the second soldier out there with the Infected. She couldn't see much due to the lack of light and her only source of light was outside the shutters. But she could see the beam of light coming from the surviving soldier's gun.

"Come on then!" She heard him scream, his gun aimed at the Infected who had killed the other one. "What you gonna do?" But then all she heard was a scream as he was jumped on from behind.

The Infected then proceeded to smash into the shutters. Each of them grabbed them and started trying to shake them loose. Chrystelle closed her eyes as the rattling got harder and harder, louder and louder. It was an unbearable sound, that and the snarling of the Infected. She thought it was like being at the zoo, except it was the animals peering in and rattling the cage at her.

During these moments, not a thought about the soldiers crossed her mind.


	6. A Hint of Hope

**A/N - And here we are, half way through. It's been so fun to write and I can't believe I've managed it all. Before The Cure Carrier, I had never managed to finish a fanfic before. But then after watching both 28 Days and 28 Weeks Later, the story just started to build up in my head and it's lead to here. I just hope you have enjoyed reading my stuff up to now and enjoy what I've got coming up. Thanks so much for the interest, it means a lot. Ricky.**

Chapter Five

Gerran was also on the run. It seemed the department store was crawling with Infected. He stood and looked back through the sight, squeezing the trigger to take a few of them out. There were so many, he didn't know where they had all come from. They must have been alerted by the other Infected.

Bullet by bullet, the Infected dropped to the floor. But the bullets couldn't keep them at bay forever, so Gerran did the smart thing and turned to keep running. He looked all around the basement for somewhere to hide but all he could see using his now turned on torch was walls and discarded boxes. He couldn't see a door or hallway, anything which would lead into another room. A store room, a fire exit, anything.

As he kept running, his legs started aching and he was running out of breath. He was carrying too much and it was affecting his speed, so he screwed off the torch attachment and threw the MP5 away, detached his utility belt and threw it at the Infected behind him. He remembered he had a Glock handgun in a holster on his leg which he could use as a last resort weapon. Without the extra baggage, he was able to keep at a good distance from his pursuers.

At the end of the basement, Gerran's torch caught sight of a door. It had a staff only sign on it, but what good would that do now? He wondered if he would make it in there in time to close it on the Infected or not. He turned around and pulled out his handgun, aiming at the front few Infected. Each of their heads popped and they fell to the ground, tripping the others up. This gave him time to get an advantage and run to the door. He flung the door open, took a last look at the advancing Infected and slammed it shut, bolting the lock on.

He took a deep breath, slumping to the floor. For a few moments, he was able to relax and catch his breath. He shone his torch in every direction, but to his horror, the door had led to the last place he'd want to be. Instead of a way out of the store, he found himself in the staff store cupboard. As far as his eyes could see, there was nothing but a pile of flattened cardboard boxes littered on the floor. He sat back, knowing there was nothing to do, except wait for them to bash their way in.

"You bastards."

Tammy made her way slowly down the pitch black corridor to the toilets. She thought that maybe she'd be able to barricade herself in until she can make contact with Manda. She looked through the night sight at the toilets and checked for the women's. It was the door on the right, and she slid it open slowly. To her luck, there wasn't any Infected in the room.

She sat down on the sink and rested the gun beside her. Breathing deeply she tried to think of a way she could find Manda, but nothing came to her. She jumped right into the air as her radio made a crackling noise. She forgot each of them were given one. She heard Gerran's voice coming into focus.

"Can anyone hear me?" his accent was easily recognisable. "I'm trapped and I'm not gonna make it."

Then she heard another voice come from it, this time it was Manda's.

"Gerran, what do you mean?" She asked slowly.

"Manda!" Tammy shrieked with excitement.

"Tammy, we can speak in a minute, give Gerran a minute."

Tammy realised it was the right thing to do, and let Gerran continue.

"Anyway, I'm not going to make it. I ran down the basement, thinking there might be a way out, let alone the survivors. But they followed me en masse. I dunno where they came from, but there's loads. You lot have to get out of here now, don't bother about the survivors, just get everyone who's alive out of here. You got me?" he explained firmly.

There was an awkward silence as Gerran waited for an answer. It seemed to Tammy that neither she nor Manda felt they could make the choice for each other. But then a third voice chimed in, an English sounding one.

"Chrystelle here." It started. "I speak for all of us survivors, when I accept your orders. You're the leader, so we must obey."

"Bu-" Manda went to protest.

"No time to argue." Chrystelle stopped her. "I'm in the Woolworths on the other side on the ground floor, the Infected are trying to get in but they're not succeeding. Come get me and we'll leave. Good luck Gez."

Tammy's radio went back to static after that. She didn't know what had happened to Gerran, but she could only hope that he'd keep safe as long as possible. She didn't want to leave the toilets in fear of being captured by the Infected. There was a little patch of light shining through the windows and it shone straight into a body on the floor. But she didn't look at the body; she looked at a piece of paper prized in his hand. Reluctantly, she bent down next to him and covered her mouth and nose at the rancid smell which poured from the rotten skin. Gagging as she hurriedly wrenched the paper free; she flew back into the sinks.

Tammy unscrewed the paper and read, the best she could through the smudged ink, what was written on it.

_Whoever reads this, I know it probably wasn't your fault you didn't get here on time. Infection isn't everywhere, there are some places of sanctuary. It may look bad, but it's not completely the end. Whoever finds this note, if anyone finds it, let me tell you. Cardiff is isolated, but not just to the Infected. There's a boat, waiting to take people off the mainland, but hurry. It leaves in a couple of days. They don't like new people, so good luck._

Tammy turned it over to see if it continued, but it didn't. She thought for a moment, somewhere free from infection, that's exactly where they needed to take her brother. The writing on the piece of paper brought a bit of warmth to her stone cold mind. She couldn't help but just stand there and read it over and over again. It helped restore some hope into her doubtfulness. The paper didn't look old and the body had been killed recently, so it must have been written not long ago. She thought of how happy Manda would be when she learnt of it and then she remembered, she still needed to get back to Manda.

She switched her radio on again.

"Manda, I'm in the upstairs toilets." She said into it, hoping for a reply.

"Look, Tammy. You need to be brave okay? Be brave and do everything I'm about to tell you. You need to go to Woolworths on your own. I can't try and find you, it's too risky. You've got the gun for protection, now just go." Manda replied swiftly and clicked her radio off. She hadn't given Tammy a choice.

She just had to do what Manda specified. She pocketed the piece of paper which could hold the key to their safety and reached for the gun. She took a deep breath and stepped out of the toilets, luckily for her and possibly Manda, the Infected were all drawn to the growls outside Woolworths. She ran all the way there, her torch lighting the path for her. As she got there, she noticed the familiar black shirt and blonde hair of Manda standing, watching the Infected wracking on the shutters by Woolworths. She slowly approached her, surprisingly; Manda didn't jump at her sudden appearance at all.

"Turn the torch off." She whispered at Tammy, who did so. Manda turned her radio on. "Chrystelle, when you answer whisper. We can see you now, go to the back of the shop, there should be a delivery exit, there always is."

"Okay, I'll try, it's complete darkness in here." The reply came.

"We'll keep the Infected distracted. Get to the jeep and start it up. You were given a set of keys right?"

"Yeah. Meet you outside." Chrystelle said finally before switching her radio off.

Manda turned to Tammy. "Get one in the head okay?" She asked. Tammy nodded back at her.

Both of them raised their guns and aimed through their scopes. Lining the up with two Infected heads.

"Shoot and then drop them and run towards the light of the main doors." She instructed. They took a deep breath and pulled both of the triggers simultaneously.

Two of the Infected's head blew up in a shower of blood and they fell to the ground, before the others all turned their heads and started running.

"Now!" Screamed Manda, who had turned to run, pulling Tammy to do the same. The light of the main doors acted as their guide. Both of them missed almost tripping over the masses of dead bodies littering the floors, unfortunately the Infected were having such good luck as well.

It was a long run to the doors of the centre, but as they reached them, they were forced to stand back as they saw the jeep reversing right into them. It smashed right through the doors and Chrystelle was sat in the front, completely unharmed.

"In! Now!" She screamed, noticing the masses of Infected following the two other survivors. Manda almost threw Tammy into the jeep and climbed in herself.

"Drive!" Manda screamed hysterically.

After a half an hour of driving and losing their pursuers, Chrystelle stopped the jeep and let everyone have a few minutes rest.

"Well that was a load of shit." She complained. "Wait! We forgot about Gez." She clicked her radio on, as Manda and Tammy had thrown theirs away before escaping. "Gerran. Gerran are you there?"

There was no answer, nothing but static. All three of them gulped.

"Were you close to him?" Manda asked out of respect.

"No not really. I mean we said hi sometimes, but nothing serious." She replied. "It's just _another_ needless death. Like the two other soldiers with me. I didn't even care to remember their names." She revealed the tragic truth.

"I'd be glad." Manda said, much to the other two's surprise. "It's not nice seeing people die when you know their names." For the rest of the trip, Manda was completely silent.

For the rest of the afternoon, Manda didn't speak to either Tammy or Chrystelle, who had gone back to staff area to be debriefed by the General. It wasn't until they were walking down to dinner at 7pm that Tammy made an attempt to get through to her.

"Manda I-" She started. "I found this thing in the toilets."

Manda didn't say anything; she just kept walking through the stone corridors. If there was one thing that annoyed Tammy, it was when people ignored the problem rather

than facing it.

"Why did you say that thing back there?" She tried again, just to be greeted by the same silence. "You know, the thing about not knowing people's names." This time, Manda stopped.

"Well it's true isn't it?" She replied. "I mean, have you ever had to kill someone you knew the name of? No, so don't try and question me." She started walking again.

Tammy's insides lurched as she remembered she had to do just that. "Yes." She took a gulp and continued. "My Dad."

Manda stopped again, and ran back to Tammy, gripping her in a hug. "I am so sorry, I had no idea."

"He was infected and about to kill Andy." Tears started forming in her eyes. "But that's not what hurts the most."

"You don't have to say it if you don't want." Manda said, she had experience in keeping her emotions in.

"I want to." Tammy protested. "It's been a month or so now, so I'm not as affected, but it still hurts on the inside, so much. But the last conversation we had was an argument. He had told us our Mum had been killed by the Infected. But she hadn't, she was still alive, Andy found her at our old house. He looked like he was about to confess to something, he looked really guilty. But then he left to go see her. The next thing I heard from Andy was that Dad was one of them." She wiped the tear from her eye; she had reached her emotional limit and could cry no more. Manda let go of her and they continued walking.

"Just remember, if you ever need someone to talk to, like a Mother. I'm always here for you." Manda offered, feeling she knew Tammy better now all that was out in the air.

"Thank you." Tammy replied, before rummaging through her pockets and getting the piece of paper she found in the toilets. "I found this when we were separated." She handed it to Manda, who read it and re-read it to make sure she wasn't dreaming it.

"But we're safe here." She said, realising where they were.

"Yeah but look." Tammy pointed at the last bit. "It says there's a boat."

Manda thought this over for a good portion of the walk down to the canteen. She couldn't quite believe what she had read, could there really be a boat going out to the mainland? The last she heard, the American military had quarantined the country, but with their newly found isolation, maybe they had withdrawn it.

"Well," They sat down in the canteen with their food, "for all we know, the boat has left. We don't know how recent this note is."

Tammy couldn't really think of a way of arguing against that, Manda made sense. Instead, she took the sausage off her plate and passed it over to Manda's, before digging into the small pile of carrots. Then she remembered what they had said in the meeting.

"But Gerran and Callum said she got the message from the people today, so they can't have written this note anytime before they got our message this morning." She took a triumphant fork full of peas and put them in her mouth.

Manda couldn't argue with that either. "Good point. But either way we're stuck here until Andy recovers. There's no way we can leave with him in this state. Little did either of them know, it was much worse, his memory was fading. She took a bit out of her own food, sausage with new potatoes and a bit of veg. It wasn't much, but enough to satisfy their hunger.

"So you're saying we'll try when he gets better?" Tammy asked excitedly.

"I didn't say that." She answered. "We're perfectly safe here; do you really want to run the risk of dying before we get to Cardiff?"

"But don't you remember? Flynn's original plan was to get us out the country, then we got diverted and ended up here."

Manda was quiet after that and changed the subject for the rest of dinner. The two of them went off to the hospital to sleep for the night, to make sure they weren't injured after the excursion to the shopping centre. They were greeted by John, who hugged them and gave Manda a peck on the cheek. Little known to them, Steph was watching from the corner of the room, feeling ever more jealous.

She waited until they were all in bed and left her desk. She looked over Manda, her sleeping, sleek, attractive body. She knew why John loved Manda so much; it was because she was blonde. Why couldn't _she _be blonde, she kept wondering. She had spent ages pining after John making subtle hints and even not-so-subtle ones. But all Manda has to do is walk in and the months of friendship was forgotten. It frustrated her.

Then there was the boy, Andy. The sick boy that John loved so much. Maybe it would just be better to put him out of his misery. Still she couldn't be like that around him, she had to be happy and smile. She even liked him slightly when she talked to him. But the way John spent the most of the day and night with him, it grated on her.

She looked into John's office at him talking with Andy, preparing for his next memory session and muttered under her breath. "Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I'll do it."


	7. Andy's Second Memory

Chapter Six

John walked back into his office with three cups of coffee. He handed one to Steph, put one on his desk and gave the other to Andy.

"What better remedy is there than tea?" He asked heartily, before changing his tune. "Unfortunately, all we have is coffee. Well this poor excuse for coffee."

Andy took a sip from the cup and squinted. Still, he needed the nourishment and coffee was one of the best ways of keeping himself awake at night. He had only been in the camp two days, yet it felt like two years. He did, however, feel a lot better than he had two nights ago, when he first had the liquid injected into him. It must be working. He was also remembering things from his past again, but the subway tunnel was still cloudy for him. His headaches had stopped, but he was still sick occasionally.

"Are you ready to start?" John asked, sitting down on a chair next to the bed.

Andy nodded and tried to think of another memory. A big event in his life. "What about the time I broke my ribs?" He suggested.

John was shocked. He wondered how so much could happen to one boy and yet he was still in one piece. "Go on then." He smiled.

Again, Andy closed his eyes and tried to put himself in the memory…

It was a Saturday back in February 2007 and the sun was shining high in the air, despite the time of the year. Andy and his friend, Charlie were in Ravenscourt park which was a half an hour walk from their houses in Chiswick. They were lazing about, not doing anything in particular, just sitting on the swings and chatting about games, girls, everything two boys would. Andy was showing off his new Vans trainers and beige cargo shorts he had bought the day previous and Charlie was brandishing his new state of the art phone.

A lot had happened since their first day back in September. They had finally gained the courage to tell the teachers about their run-ins with Curtis and he was given an expulsion; Andy's Dad, Don had got a maintenance job at Canary Wharf and after a second panic attack in a lift (the first had happened in the Lake District back in 2004) he had been diagnosed with severe claustrophobia. However, not that Curtis was expelled, they had to avoid him on the streets, as he was much angrier.

Andy's relationship with Tammy was getting slightly better, now he was going to the same school, that she was doing her A levels at, she had to keep an eye out for him and make sure he wasn't getting bullied again.

He was sat on the swing, gently swinging himself in a lazy fashion as he watched the other kids messing about in the park. People were playing football, running around playing tig, taking over the climbing frame and keeping the younger ones out and there was a set of older girls laying on the grass in skimpy short skirts.

"…and then she jumps over a gravestone and kicks a zombie in the head!" He heard Charlie saying excitedly. He quickly tried to look like he had been listening. "Are you actually going to listen to me Andy, or am I not that interesting?"

"Yeah, sorry." Andy replied, looking at his shoes. "I zoned out."

"You're always zoning out."

"Whatever." Andy laughed and playfully kicked Charlie's leg. "How much money did your Dad give you?"

Charlie looked through his pockets and pulled out a £5 note. He showed it to Andy who pulled out a fiver as well.

"Why don't we get lunch then? I'm starving" Andy suggested. They got off the swings and started towards the gate leading out of the park.

The streets of Central London were thriving with life. Businessmen were walking by, talking loudly into their phones; older kids were standing on street corners smoking what smelt, to Andy, like rotten eggs; young mothers pushed their babies in prams, screaming at them to stop crying and people of all ethnicity were interacting with each other.

The cars on the road emitted filthy gas into the air, spreading pollution throughout. Andy and Charlie were approaching the local McDonalds. The big, yellow 'M' stood out like a sore thumb from the assortment of stone coloured shops. Hey went through the big glass doors and made their way to the counter. Luckily for them, Curtis and his gang were nowhere to be seen. They ordered their food (a Big Mac for Andy and a McChicken Sandwich for Charlie) and sat down at a window table.

"Doctor Who looks good." Charlie started the conversation, taking a chunk out of his chicken burger.

Yeah, but I don't like the look of that David Tennant guy." Andy replied, looking out the window at the huge traffic jam building up. That morning, he had had a row with his Sister. A rather bad one, worse than usual. It started because he had gone into her room without permission to find a comb or hairbrush and she had come in before he had a chance to leave. It escalated and resulted in Tammy threatening to cut off his hair and him storming out the house. Now he was regretting it deeply.

"Hey." Charlie said, spotting something outside the window. "Isn't that Curtis?"

Andy snapped his head round and looked out the window behind him. Charlie was right. They quickly finished their food and binned the rubbish, hoping to make a quick getaway. Of course, they were too late and never going to avert his gaze and as soon as they stepped out from the restaurant, he spotted them.

"Oi! You little poofs, where d'you think you're going?" He shouted, making them stop in their tracks. "Where's my McDonalds?"

"We didn't buy _you_ one." Charlie retorted coolly.

"Well go buy me one then." The answer was simple.

"We haven't got enough money." Andy said, backing Charlie up.

Curtis looked back at his gang and fell into a fit of laughter. "That's always your excuse, and don't think being in a public place is gonna protect you." He grabbed Andy by the neck of his shirt and pulled him in to intimidate.

Panicking and not knowing what to do Andy, not sure it would help or not, plummeted his foot right into Curtis' shin. Curtis instantly let him go and rubbed his shin, which was now in striking pain. Andy looked at Charlie, and they both set off as fast as they could down the busy London street. It was hard running and not bumping into people, everywhere they turned there would be a thick muster of people walking absently through the city centre. Despite the situation, running through urban London, up and down stairs and through shopping centres was exhilarating. Something Andy and Charlie had never felt before. The adrenaline pumped through their blood furiously.

Andy looked behind him to see if they had lost Curtis, but to his amazement, the overweight pursuer was managing to keep up with them. He saw him ram into an old lady pushing a trolley in a bit to keep up. He looked like a cheetah keep to catch its prey. It was just Andy's luck that he was the prey. He turned his head to look where they was going again and ran right into the middle of the road with the traffic lights on green. Charlie made it across unhurt, but Andy almost clipped an passing bicycle courier.

They ran on laughing as Curtis was stuck on the other side of the road, blocked by a wall of cars, stopping in an alley to hide and catch their breaths.

"You _kicked_ Curtis." Charlie half-spluttered, half-laughed.

"I know. I'm going to get killed!" Andy replied, realising the repercussions of what his actions might bring.

"Na, I wouldn't worry about it. We've lost him now, so-" He was cut off by a deep voice coming from round the corner.

"Lost me 'ave ya? I wouldn't say that." Curtis came running into view, his head dripping with sweat.

Instantly, Andy and Charlie set off again, without thinking twice. They set off down the back alleys rather than the streets this time, in a bid to swerve out of Curtis' view. The area was starting to get dangerous as they entered a more industrialised side of London. They were starting to enter building sites and factory areas.

They ran up some stairs onto a metal walkway, which had no railings, where they bumped into none other than Andy's sister, Tammy. She and a group of friends were stood watching the muscular workers carrying crates to and from lorries. Andy ran up to her and started to babble about how he had kicked Curtis and now he was after them.

"Shut up!" She shouted at him, barely hearing anything he had said. He did so straight away. "Can you please go away?

"But Tammy! What about Curtis?" He pleaded.

"You know what you little pest?" She started. "I don't give a flying crap what you've done to him; as far as I'm concerned you deserve everything you get. Maybe then you'll think twice about going in my room."

"Why do you have to be such a… such a… such a bitch!" He shouted back.

Tammy smiled evilly and laughed out loud. "Wait until Dad hears about that, you're _so_ busted."

She and her friends all laughed and walked off back to the busy streets, leaving Andy and Charlie in the open for Curtis to find. And find them he did. Andy turned around and collided with what turned out to be Curtis' large stomach. Once again, Charlie being his old reliable self ran away, leaving Andy on his own to face the bully down.

"You gonna say sorry?" Curtis breathed in his face, reaching to grab him at the same time. His gang was no longer with him, so it was just him and Andy.

"Never." He said back meekly.

Curtis grabbed him by the rim of his shirt again, not learning from the last time he did so. Once again, Andy went for a kick, this time, Curtis' leg gave way and he fell to his knees. In the process, Andy fell out of his grasp, and instead of landing back on the walkway, he hit the side of it and fell.

It felt like he had fallen off a cliff face as he plummeted towards the building site below. The air soared past him as the ground came closer and closer, whipping his hair upwards. He didn't want to look, so he closed his eyes and braced himself for impact.

SMASH!

His body had collided with a brick wall, the red bricks ripping through hid skin and caving his ribs in on themselves. He struggled to breathe, all he could get out were quick one second bursts of breath. His eyes closed slowly, although he fought the urge to just faint as much as he could. It was no use, he was completely unconscious and laying spread across the floor on a building site in central London.

He opened his eye slowly. He was in a large white room, or at least the ceiling was white. Where was he? The last thing he could remember was plummeting to the ground from the metal walkway. He looked down at his arms, one was connected to a drip. Trying to sit up, he let out a yelp as a sharp pain went surging through his body. He had no idea what was causing the pain, but he laid back down on his back straight away. A nurse was running up to the bed he was laying in, her mouth agape. He then realised that he was in a hospital, recovering from the accident.

"No, no, no. Don't try and sit up yet. Best just to relax, okay darling?" She said, calming down.

Andy nodded, clenching his teeth as the pain soothed. Then the door of the ward flung open. Through it came his Dad, Mum and a tear stricken Tammy. They all sat round his bed, looking relieved that he was still alive. They all sat there for a few minutes, silently smiling, just relieved that their son was alive. Tammy, still crying, couldn't say anything. The nurse walked over again and explained the situation.

"The surgery went really well. He's had a chest tube put in which will extract all the fluids and the puncture should hopefully heal over time. And we've also fashioned a metal splint to the broken ribs to keep them in place as they heal." She explained it all.

"Do you know how long he's going to be here?" Don asked.

She looked at her notes and answered. "About two months, roughly. He'll be in safe hands." She smiled at Andy, who was fighting to keep his drowsy eyes open.

After a number of rambles from his parents about how glad they were that he was alright, they left, with the still silent Tammy in tow.

He could do nothing for the next week but stare at the ceiling. The nurse told him he could start working on sitting up, but he didn't want to experience such pain again. It hurt to move, cough, sneeze and even to breath. It was the most miserable time he had ever experienced, up until that point that was. At the end of the week, he was informed that he had another visitor. He approved and the visitor was allowed in. Of all the people it could have been, it was the last Andy expected. It was Tammy. She wasn't her usual glamorous self, her hair was unbrushed and flat, her clothes were creased and her face was free from make up and red from where she had been crying. She sat down and gave Andy a kiss of the forehead, as it was impossible to hug him without inflicting severe pain.

"It's all my fault." She sobbed endlessly. If I had stayed and helped, you wouldn't have fell."

"Tammy, it's fine, honestly." Andy tried to comfort her. For once he understood how she felt and he got the feeling she really did feel remorse for what happened. "I know I annoyed you."

"Yeah, but you could have died. Because of me, you could have died. Can you forgive me?" She looked him in the eyes, her eyes full of sorrow and sadness.

Andy just wanted to sit up and hug her. Slowly, he used his arms and pushed himself up. The pain was incomprehensible, but he would do anything just to see Tammy smile again. He flung his arms round her and hugged her as tightly as possible in his condition.

"I'm going to do all I can to protect you." She continued. "Nothing is ever going to hurt you, because I'll always be there." She sobbed into his shoulder. "Starting with this trip to Spain you've got coming in September. You can bring a parent or sibling, so I'll come."

He let go and pulled himself back into a laying down position and stared at the collection of get well cards piled on his bedside table…

"So that's why Tammy is so protective?" John asked, listening intently.

Andy nodded and replied. "Yeah, and since then, we've been really close."

John jumped out of the chair and bent over Steph's shoulder. Looking at the notes she had been writing up about the session and nodded happily to himself. She turned around and caught his eye. She took the chance she had and smiled at him, in the sweetest way possible. Instead of returning the same smile, as she hoped, he nodded and gave a half smile, before returning to Andy.

"Well you're doing really well mate, one more go and you should be ready to try and go through the things you had forgotten." He told him. "So what happened after that? How long was it until you were able to go home."

"Only a month. I heard the doctors saying to each other how unusually quick it was. But I didn't ask about it." He replied. "John, can I please leave this room for a little bit tomorrow?"

Ignoring the first thing Andy had said, as john knew exactly why it had been so fast, he answered the second bit instead. "Maybe. If you feel up for it tomorrow, I'll take you around the castle for a bit, okay? But now, time to sleep alight?"

"Okay. Night John. Night Steph."

Steph got out of her seat and she and John left the room, turning the light off as they went.


	8. The Truth Revealed

Chapter Seven

Morning rolled over the castle and the sun fought furiously to break through the looming rain-filled clouds. Birds tweeted songs and flapped their wings furiously in the air. The tranquillity brought a couple of hours of normality to the world. But to Steph, the world could no longer be normal. She had seen to much in the past seven months to ever thing the world could go back to normality. But she also didn't want to have to try and live with the chaos; her state of mind was ripping to shreds.

"See you on the other side." She said aloud whilst finishing writing a note she had started earlier. She folded the paper in half and stuck it in an envelope, which she licked and sealed. She got up from her chair on the balcony and headed silently back into the hospital wing and then into John's office, where Andy was fast asleep. She slipped round to where his clothes were left and carefully placed the letter in his jeans pocket. She stared at him, lying there. She knew today was the day, the day she put her plan into action. She was going to get John, no matter what.

She looked at her watch and noticed that it was now 9am and everyone would be waking up soon. She slid back out onto the balcony and looked out into the forest ahead. She sighed and stared at the emergency alert horn, an old air raid horn recovered from Cardiff, which was placed next to the balcony in case of emergency. There were many of them all scattered throughout the castle, and if anything were to happen, someone would have to set it off and everyone would meet at an assembly point.

"Morning." She heard from John's office. "How you doing this morning?"

John must have been back. She grinned to herself and went instantly back to the office. John was drinking another mug of "coffee" and trying to tune his portable radio, to no avail. Andy was stretching and yawning, having only just woken up.

"John, are you gonna take me around the base today?" Andy asked, still slightly tired.

"Give me until 12, then I'll take you down to have lunch. Okay?" He smiled. "I've just got to check your symptoms to see if the vaccine is working or not."

Andy nodded and went back to laying down, flattening his fuzzy morning hair down.

Then it struck Steph. If Andy got up and got dressed, he'd find the note she left in his pocket. If the note was discovered, then that was her plan finished and she would have to face the consequences.

"John, can I have a word please?" She said sweetly. He agreed and led her out of the door on the other side of the room, which took them to a set of steps which led down to the ground. The air was fresh and dew droplets had formed on every individual blade of grass. The sun hung lazily in the sky, trying to push through the clouds and a light breeze flew through the air.

"How you doing this morning then?" She asked wearily. There was a few seconds awkward silence, where John just stared at her, bemused.

"I'm good thanks, erm, you?" He replied, eventually.

"Yeah, I'm good too." She said. "I was thinking. Do you really think the boy's well enough to go down to lunch today?"

"His name is Andy," He replied, rolling his eyes, "and I think he's perfectly fine to come down. Now enough of questioning my judgement and back to work. Come on." He ushered her back up the stairs and into the room.

As they re-entered the room, Steph leaped towards the wardrobe which contained Andy's clothes. She picked up his jeans and dived her hand into the right pocket, pulling out the letter she had put in it earlier. Quickly, she stuffed the letter into one of her lab coat pocket and took a pen out of the other.

"Sorry. Dropped it in there earlier." She laughed weakly, to which John also laughed.

A few blood tests, strength tests and memory tests later and 12 'o' clock rolled by. John grabbed Andy's clothes and passed them out, Andy stuck his trainers on, brushed his hair and they went down to lunch. Leaving Steph to finish writing the results of the tests down. She was once again left to her thoughts; and her thoughts were dangerous. She was thrilled as today was the day she was going to make sure she gets John, not Manda. For years she had dedicated her life to working with him, they had formed such a close relationship and she thought it could go further than that. Obviously she was wrong, but there was no way she was going to accept it.

She had grown up in Cardiff, yet she had always managed to retain her English accent. She had had a number of relationships in the past, but they had never really worked out; none of them lasting any longer than a few months. Then in 2004, John moved into the same hospital as her and they formed a close friendship and working partnership. For a little while in late 2006, it seemed there could be a chance of a relationship, but once the infection broke out in September, things had completely been put on hold, then stopped. At first it didn't hurt as much, but as infection spread more rapidly, and the failure of the US to save Britain, everything had started to drive her insane.

Just as she was staring absently at a sample of blood John had taken, Manda entered the room, in search for something.

"Oh hi, have you seen John anywhere today?" She asked cheerily. The words struck a nerve with Steph, so she kept silent, ignoring Manda's presence. "Sorry, excuse me." She repeated.

Steph looked up. Her face showing that she was clearly not happy to see her. "What?" She said, simply.

"Sorry, I was just wondering where John has taken Andy?" Manda replied, eyeing Steph suspiciously.

"How would I know?" Steph said, scowling then turning back to the samples.

"If looks could kill."

"Say that again." Steph stood up, facing Manda.

"Oh nothing. It's just, when we first arrived you seemed so sweet and nice. I guess I must have caught you at a bad time?"

"You think you can waltz in here and ask where John is?" Steph started. "And then pretend that it's just about where he's taken the boy? You're full of shit." Not even she could understand why she had just said that. She had never felt this way before and didn't understand why.

"Well if you're going to be like that." Manda said, now scowling back. "I guess I'll just leave you to your work."

"No." Steph had walked round her and stood in the way of the door. "Stay. I've got a few things to say."

Manda stood for a few seconds, looking at the mad glint in Steph's eyes. Then she agreed and sat on Andy's bed, waiting for her to begin what she wanted to say.

"We _can_ get on. But with two rules. One - You don't talk to John, you don't make any contact with him. Only if you're visiting the boy under my supervision. And two - As soon as the treatment is finished, you leave. Straight away, no goodbyes, nothing. Just go and see the General and he'll let you out. You got me?"

Manda sat staring intently at Steph. The woman had to be mad, there was no other explanation for it.

"You want my answer?" She got off the bed and went to the door. "Piss off. If you think I want to get off with John. You're wrong. I've barely known him a few days, why would I suddenly want to snog him? So if you want to go and accuse someone, try and get your facts right."

"Don't lie!" Steph shouted this time. "You're in love with him. You're trying to take him from me! And now you're going to run down to him and declare your love for him! Well do it! See if I care. He's in the canteen!" She fell back into her chair and sobbed.

"I think- I think you need help." Manda didn't know whether to go and see if Steph was okay or run to John and tell him everything. "I don't think you're well."

Steph snapped. She stood up and grabbed one of Manda's laptops which were sitting on the desk. "I'm well enough to do this." And evil grin spread across her face and she licked her lips. To Manda's horror, she threw the laptop across the room and into the stone wall opposite. It smashed with an almighty crashing noise. Glass, plastic and circuit boards littered the floor. She then went and retrieved a bit of the glass and painfully sliced through the skin of her knee. She grimaced in pain as she did so, and then threw the glass back down. "Now if anyone asks, I tripped, okay?" She glared.

Manda was horrified. The woman was insane, no one else would act this way unless they were so. She back away through the door and waited until she was a reasonable distance from the office before turning round and breaking into a run. Tammy had gone down to lunch, so she should be able to find her with Andy and John. Or at least she hoped she would, she didn't want Tammy wandering in on Steph when she was in that state.

She wasn't crying, but the encounter with Steph had definitely shaken her, so much in fact that she nearly tripped down the winding staircase to the main courtyard which led to the canteen. She didn't know how she was going to explain what happened, as John had known Steph for a long time and would probably believe her story more.

"And this is the canteen." John explained, as he and Andy entered the canteen after showing him the old toilets they had to use during the time the castle was occupied. He guided him to the trays and each of them picked one up and placed it on the runway ledge. Andy saw the assortment of food on display. After over a month of hunger and scavenging off leftovers, the mangled bits of meat and scrappy vegetables looked like a banquet to him.

"Y'alright Dave?" He asked as he passed his tray to the man behind the cabinets of food.

"Not too bad thanks John." He replied, putting a slice of ragged looking lamb on John's plate. "We found a few more stray sheep the other day in the hills. Lucky or what?"

"Unbelievable. You wouldn't even know the Infected were around." John laughed as Andy passed Dave his plate as well.

Dave stacked a pile of peas onto both the plates and added some lamb to Andy's. "Heard anymore from the survivors in Cardiff?" He passed them both their plates.

"We reckon they were bullshitting us. We got there and the whole city has been blocked off." John explained. "Must've been to keep the Infected out of something, guess it didn't work." He grabbed hold of the two, now full, plates and handed one to Andy. "Anyway. I'll see you around Dave." He smiled and moved on, looking for a table.

"Over there" Andy pointed as he noticed Tammy sitting on a table at the other side of the cavernous room, tucking into some badly cut carrots. He attempted to run over to her, before John grabbed his arm and warned him that he wasn't completely well yet. Instead, they walked over there, after Andy shouted and got his sister's attention. She looked up and a massive grin spread across her face. They embraced and sat down to eat.

"So, how you doing?" She asked, shoving another piece of carrot into her mouth.

"Really well." He smiled. "I've started to remember more of what happened in the subway."

"That's great." She looked at his eye, where the patch of blood was still collecting. Her smile faded somewhat.

John noticed this and reassured her. "The vaccine won't completely heal him, that haemorrhage is going to be there for life, I'm afraid. A battle scar. But it'll be harmless."

Just as he finished the sentence he looked up to see Manda standing, panting, out of breath. She ran across the room, colliding with several people as she went. All the noise and commotion of plates smashing on the floor and people yelling in rage made the whole room go silent and watch as she ran over to John.

"Steph. Is. Mad!" She panted to him, as she grasped his arms tightly. So tight in fact, her nails dug through his coat sleeves. She hoped to god that John would understand and believe her, but she knew the chances were slim. She had had issues with people not believing her in the past, so she fully expected this to be the same.

"Hold on, stop." John said, prying her hands off of him. "What did you say?"

"I went in there to find you, and she just went crazy and threw my laptop at the wall. I don't know what I did wrong." She rambled.

"Sh-sh. Just calm down." He Looked her in the eyes, and from that instant, Manda knew she could trust him. The look in his big brown eyes was reassuring and slightly attractive. "We'll go and see her okay? Andy stay here with your sister. Tammy, looks after him until we get back please."

He led Manda out of the canteen, anxious to find out what had really happened. He only had Manda's side of the story and he felt Steph should be given a fair chance to defend herself. They finally got out of the canteen and into the deserted court yard, everyone was too busy eating, or staying inside, the weather had turned from sunny to dingy by the afternoon and it gave the base a generally depressing mood.

They climbed the spiral staircase back up into the medical wing and strutted over to John's office. Manda, now more determined than shaken, was convinced John would believe her and get rid of Steph immediately.

John, however, had different ideas. He was going to give Steph a fair chance to explain her side of the story, unknowing to him, she already had a convincing and well put together alibi sorted and would easily be able to use it to blag herself out of trouble.

"Right, Steph, explain." John said as he entered his office, raising his left eyebrow.

Having already heard their footsteps, Steph was sat on the bed "nursing" her cut knee with a bit of tissue. Squinting forcefully every time she stuck it on her wound. The mess from the smashed laptop was now cleared and spread across Steph's desk. She looked up at John, painfully.

"Can I have a word?" He asked, not what she expected him to say, given the state of her knee.

"Erm, yes, of course." She replied, gesturing that they go somewhere private, but John and Manda stayed right where they were.

"Can you tell me what happened here please?" He asked, he had to keep unbiased at the moment, so kept his voice as neutral as possible. He gestured to her knee, and then the smashed laptop.

"Oh… I tripped." She stuttered, remembering the story she had told Manda. "And cut my knee on that jagged bit of flooring." She pointed towards a slightly lose bit of stone on the floor which curved out into a sharp blade.

Instantly, Manda fired. "Liar!" She shouted. "Tell him the truth!" She stared Steph down, almost as if she was trying to scare her into spilling the truth.

"I _am _telling the truth!" She spat back. "I have the cut on my knee to prove it."

"No, you threw it at the wall and cut yourself." Manda disbelieved that anyone could be so warped.

"Now come on, if you're going to make up a story about me, at least make it half convincing." There was a small hint of a smile from Steph's lips.

At that moment, Manda lost her temper and lunged herself at Steph, who was still nursing her knee. She placed a nice clean slap, right round Steph's right cheek and then did it again, but to the left. They left big, blindingly red hand marks on either cheek. John, having not been prepared for such an attack, grabbed Manda and pulled her away and into the doorway.

"What was that all about?" John asked, bewildered.

"She wasn't telling the truth, she instigated it!" Manda fought her corner, trying to avoid the gaze of a now smirking Steph. "She deserves everything she got."

"All I saw there was an unprovoked attack. Now if I were you, I'd go and see Andy and Tammy and take a break, this situation is obviously putting too much stress on you." He raised his eye brows at her, and like a scorned puppy, she left, silently.

Steph continued smirking and bandaged her leg, everything was coming together now, her plan was working, soon she was going to get John all to herself and she wasn't going to let anyone or anything get in her way.


	9. Andy's Final Memory

Chapter Eight

After the commotion of what had happened earlier that day, during lunch, John was attempting to act like it had never happened. The chemistry between him and Steph had gone stale, and even though he believed her story to begin with, he was beginning to doubt it. The overall tone of the room was very tense and very uncomfortable, with each of them avoiding each other's gaze whilst still trying to act normal around Andy. Manda and Tammy had gone down to the courtyard to enjoy some night time entertainment that one of the residents had set up, he was a professional guitarist had managed to salvage his guitar as he was brought to the castle.

John was sat; trying to salvage any data of the serum devised from Andy's blood off of Manda's smashed laptop, unsuccessfully. Steph was deep in her book about psychology, reading about the complexity of the human mind and Andy had found an old tattered copy of _Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone_ in the base library. He had always been fascinated by fantasy novels, and he thought Harry Potter was the best of the best.

"I'm going to join the festivities down stairs." Steph piped up. She put her book down and swiftly left the room. There was no response from anyone.

After failing terribly with Manda's laptop, John threw the hard drive back on the table and rubbed his eyes with his palms. He got out his chair and reached for his notepad and pen. He looked at his watch, which displayed the time as 10pm.

"You ready to start your final session?" He asked.

Andy peered over the top of the book and bent the page inwards before laying it down next to his pillow.

"Yeah sure." He replied as he sat himself up, still swamped in the moth-eaten quilt. He shook his hair out his eyes and prepared himself for what John was going to ask him to go over. "What have you got for me this time?"

"Well, I was thinking you could tell us about the time you were coming back into England from being evacuated?" John suggested, hoping this wasn't a sore subject to touch on. "I thought, since this will hopefully be the last session, and your blood samples are looking much better tonight, it would be better to go for something recent."

Andy thought for a moment, trying to remember the feeling when he was told him and Tammy were booked places on the plane back. He remembered being filled with glee and happiness, knowing that Tammy was as well, but those feelings were clouded by their constant tiredness.

"Okay, I think I'm ready now." Andy replied, thinking back to Late March…

It had been in early September that he and Tammy had gone off on a school trip to Spain, it had only been for years 7 and 8, but Tammy was there to help out as part of her A-level course. It was a trip to a small Spanish countryside town called Rabia. There wasn't anything distinctly educational about the trip, but the teachers had thought they could do with a break, as could the lower years after settling into secondary school. Most of the kids had packed their swimming stuff, in the hopes of maybe visiting the beach on the last day of their trip, they were however deeply disappointed when the opportunity never arose.

A few days into the trip, there came reports on the hotel televisions of gruesome attacks in Britain where people were ripped apart and beaten to death on the streets, soon these "riots" turned from reports to actual footage of bloodstained crazies murdering others in cold blood. Shocked by the footage, the teachers made an enquiry into what was happening, but got no result as any contact to the UK was completely prohibited. Andy and Tammy spent many sleepless nights waiting and wondering what had happened to their parents.

A newspaper arose saying that all British citizens rescued from the country were being taken to refugee camps all around Europe, and of the few survivors, the most famous were now known as the Manchester Three. The teachers were told that they could no longer stay in the hotel free of charge and, with all the pupils, were taken to a Spanish refugee camp just outside the capital city, Madrid. Over the six months of being there, the locals would donate old clothes and belongings to the pupils. Tammy got an old necklace that she kept away in a box and didn't look at, and Andy was given someone's old Real Madrid t-shirt, which he ended up wearing, despite his sister's reservations.

The strong Spanish sunlight shot through the tent that Andy and Tammy shared with eighteen-odd other people. The familiar lingering stench of faeces and urine fell upon Andy's nose as he opened his eyes, and he gagged loudly. He would have thought that months living with the same stale smell would cause him to get used to it, but he was wrong. He got up with his face screwed up and looked over to Tammy, who was awake but staring at the roof of the tent above her.

"Morning." Andy squeaked weakly; the lack of food and sleep was really taking its toll.

"Morning." Tammy replied, just as exhaustedly. "Come on; let's go get some sorry excuse of breakfast."

To Andy, it felt like the whole world was ending around him. No more parents, no more friends, no more day to day life. He might as well have been dead. Tammy had told him one night that they were living like they were in a concentration camp. He knew she was over exaggerating, but in the heat of the moment, it wasn't nice.

The pair of them got out of bed and changed into their clothes then headed off to the breakfast line. All refugees were only allowed a minimal amount of food as there was so many of them. They got into line, still tired out of their heads and Andy saw Charlie in front of them.

"Y'alright Charlie?" Andy asked, trying to sound cheerful as everyone was.

"Yeah, I 'spose." he replied, simply. No one had the energy to converse, sleepless nights and malnutrition made sure of that. "I heard the soldier talking again last night. They were talking about repatriation, whatever that is." One of the soldiers filled his bowel with what looked like soggy vegetables and then he moved on.

"What's repatriation?" Andy looked up to Tammy.

"It doesn't matter." Tammy replied. "It's not going to happen. Get your food." She pushed him forwards and he was given the same vegetable-like things.

Together, they both set off back to find a space on the dry, sandy floor. They weren't going to go and eat back in the tent; they could barely breathe in there, let alone eat. They found a small patch not too far from the camp, but far enough that they could sit in peace. Andy took a spoonful of the vegetables and was greeted by their particularly foul vinegary taste. If he wasn't mistaken, he thought the American might not even care about how the British citizens were being handled. He had heard on the radio a couple of weeks back of American scientists had been discovered experimenting on survivors and the Infected to make some kind of super-soldier. He didn't know how true it was, but it would explain why the past few months had felt like he was living in a concentration camp.

"What do you think's happened to Mum and Dad?" Andy asked, after a few mouthfuls. He had asked the same thing day after day. He knew he would probably never get a proper answer, but he was desperate to know.

"I'm sure they're fine." Tammy would reply, the same reply she gave every day. Of course Andy knew she didn't know, but there was something calming about hearing her say it.

But today was different, just as Tammy had said it; Andy looked over her shoulder, for his eyes to be greeted by two American soldiers, brandishing no weapons.

"Tammy and Andrew Harris?" The one on the right asked.

"Who's asking?" Tammy asked back, Andy could tell she had not been happy with the way they had been treated at the refugee camp.

"We have some good news, and some bad news. Firstly, the good news." The Soldier replied. "Your Father is safe in London with our NATO force; he's requested that you be let back into the country. Now the bad news. Your Mother is nowhere to be found."

Andy felt himself fill up with all the joy in the world. At least one of his parents was safe and alive, and he was going to see him soon. "So does this mean we're going home?" He blurted out.

The soldiers smiled, the first time either Andy or Tammy had seen them do so.

"Yeah kid, you're both going home. Now go and pack your things, you're allowed to take one thing each." The soldiers handed them both a plastic bag each and they jumped up and ran to the tents to choose their one item.

Despite her earlier reservations to it, Tammy packed the necklace she had been given. Andy looked at all his belongings, not sure what to take back to Britain. He spread them all out onto his bed. A Nintendo DS, a Doctor Who novel, a leather watch his Dad had given to him, a friendship bracelet and a pile of clothes. He knew he could cheat and wear the watch, therefore not counting as his personal item. He could live without the luxuries, as he had plenty more at home, so he grabbed his newly washed red pyjamas and stuffed them into the plastic bag.

Tammy hurried him up and together, they met the soldiers, who were waiting by their jeep.

"You all ready?" The first one asked. Both the kids nodded. "Good, I've informed your teachers. So if you jump in, we'll take you to the airport."

The two soldiers opened the back doors and allowed Andy and Tammy to get in. The seats weren't the comfiest Andy had ever felt, but to him everything felt comfy after sleeping in the tents for half a year. The jeep had a fresh smell, which originated from a pine tree air freshener hanging above the steering wheel. The two soldiers jumped in as well and started the engine up.

"You both ready to go home?" One of them asked, looking in the rear view mirror at Andy.

Too nervous to say anything, Andy just nodded enthusiastically.

"It's going to be great, isn't it?" Tammy smiled at Andy, for the first time in a long time, as she grabbed him and hugged him tightly.

No one was outside to wave them off as the teachers had been told to keep all the children away from the military equipment. The jeep drove noisily away from the refugee camp, down a long dusty road and out of the military gates.

"Right, so here's what's going to happen. We're gonna take you to the closest national airport. There we'll escort you around, you'll get a full meal, your tickets are booked and we'll get you on the plane as soon as possible. Then you can go home and see your Dad." The soldier went through the procedure. "Seems like us Americans are finally pulling our fingers out our asses."

There was a relaxed silence as the soldiers drove them to the airport, both Andy and Tammy were distracted by watching the towns go by, they hadn't seen this much civilisation for months, it was good to have a certain degree of freedom back. The thought of seeing his Dad again made Andy feel like the happiest kid alive, he had never felt so lonely and isolated before; even Tammy was too traumatised to help him get through it.

In the distance, a big metropolitan building approached. It was the Madrid national airport. The sight of it sparkled in Andy's eyes; it was so big, so modern, so unlike anything Andy had seen for months. The soldiers pulled the jeep into the car park to be greeted by a mob of angry protesters. Luckily, the Spanish police were there to hold them back, but many of them were chanting verses in Spanish, that Andy was unable to identify. Also, a lot of them branded picket signs reading "echarlos" and "matar a los infectados."

Despite the masses of people protesting against the refugees, the American soldiers were forced to take Andy and Tammy through the main entrance to the terminals.

"If they're after us, why are you taking us through them?" Tammy asked, quite a justified question.

"It's all procedure. We've got to take you to where the other refugees being flown back in, and there's only one way to the terminal." One of the soldiers explained. "We apologise for complications, but we can't control them as we have no legal obligation to harm or calm them."

Andy merely looked on, whilst listening into the conversation. Only half-registering what they were saying, his mind was solely on seeing his Dad's face again and possibly his Mum's as well.

The two soldiers led Andy and Tammy through the masses of Spaniards to terminal 5. They explained that they weren't allowed any further and that Tammy was to make sure she and Andy got to the plane safe and sound. Tammy nodded and grabbed her brother's hand, pulling him down the long corridor down to the boarding platform.

"You all ready?" She asked Andy as the two of them lined up to board the plane.

"Yeah." He replied. "Tammy, it's all going to go back to normal isn't it?"

They were both guided onto the plane and started to file down the aisle to find free seats.

"Of course it is. You heard what they said. The infection has been destroyed, so it'll all be like it never happened."

Andy knew she was wrong, they were never going to go back to being normal, no matter how hard they tired. But he liked to believe they could, it brought a little peace to him just to believe it. But he was again uprooted from his thoughts as Tammy grabbed his shoulder and pointed towards two empty seats in front of them. They put their two plastic bags in the overhead compartments and strapped themselves in.

"This is the captain speaking. We now have granted airspace into Great Britain." This was followed by a large cheer. "Now we're going to try and make this flight as enjoyable as possible. You will all receive a free meal, with a choice of three pre-packaged options. We also have a selection of in-flight movies, which you can watch on the screens on the back of the seats in front of you. If you need anything, just ask our flight attendants which will respond to the buzz of your assistance buttons above your heads. So I hope you enjoy your flight with us today and good luck to all of you with picking your lives up from where you left them."

Andy leaned back into his seat and looked out of the little window next to him. He knew that in a few hours, he would be back in London, back with all his family, back to normality. He watched as the view outside started moving, meaning they were also moving, and as the plant took off, Spain drifted away slowly. What could go wrong?

"…and then we arrived in London and it all started." Andy finished.

"That's brilliant." John nodded contently. "You're really starting to get there now." He got up from his chair to take a sip of water. He had given up on the tea and coffee. He looked at his watch and saw that it was almost 11pm. "I wonder where Steph has gotten too."

Just as he said that there was a loud blaring noise, sounding exactly like a Second World War air raid alert. Knowing exactly what it meant, he left Andy and shot out the room, heading for the balcony. He grabbed his radio and turned the switch off.

"General, turn the floodlights on now, medical centre." He shouted down it.

"You know we can't do that at night, you've got to be mad." as the response.

"Look, we haven't got time for this; you heard the siren, turn them on now!" He continued to shout.

There was a small pause.

"You're right." The General replied. The solar powered floodlights turned on and to John's horror, it was exactly what he had suspected.

What must have been about fifty to a hundred Infected were advancing on the castle, en masse. And not for the first time in his life, he knew he was as good as dead.


	10. The Afterlife

Chapter Nine

Steph entered the room, faced by two guards. She held up a security pass.

"Level 5 authority." She said, pocketing her pass. "And a note written by the General." She had always been good at forging handwriting and signatures.

The two guards looked at each other and one nodded. The other one entered the room behind them and came back with a metal briefcase in his hand.

"Item 36/5B as you asked Ma'am." He handed her the briefcase, without further question.

She smiled a twisted smile and left the room, the briefcase tight in her hand. Now she had to find the best place to open it, a space where no one would think to look. Unfortunately, the castle was heavily guarded around most of it, so she snuck into the closest set of toilets instead. She set the briefcase on the floor and clicked the side clips; the case swung open revealing just what she wanted. A 9mm Handgun and silencer. She stuck the extra clips of ammo in her pockets and screwed the silencer on.

Now was the time, the time she had been waiting for. She was going to rid the world of the creatures that were Manda, Andy and Tammy. But there was no way she was just going to pop a bullet in their heads. Oh no; she was going to do it big style, she was going to make sure they went out with a bang. She held the gun behind her back and started walking towards the security tower.

Every step she took felt like it had taken months, her heart was pumping, adrenaline was rushing through her body. She wondered, for the first time, just how she was going to get past all the security whilst hiding a gun behind her back. Before she could answer her own question, there was a blaring of loud music. She looked out the closest window into the courtyard and saw a large crowd gathered around a makeshift stage. Then it hit her, it was night-time entertainment. They liked to do it every so and again to keep the survivors' spirits up. Not too loud of course, otherwise the Infected would be alerted. This only made things easier for Steph, everyone all in the same place, to witness her great plan. She grinned broadly from ear to ear and continued to the security tower.

She approached the two main guards keeping watch at the entrance to the security tower, her handgun still hidden behind her back.

"Where do you think you're going Miss?" One of the guards asked her. She stopped dead in her tracks.

"Just up to the main security room. Just got to check for something." She answered.

"I'm sorry; I can't allow you to do that without specific permission." He retorted.

Steph's stomach fell, she hadn't thought about needing permission for here. She needed another way of getting up. She had her gun, but she was hoping to be able to make the first step with as little hassle as possible. But she had no other choice. And, she supposed, it would be easier not to have them to get past later.

"Well then you have _my_ permission." She said.

The guards looked at each other, bemused. The first one sniggered to the second.

"What was that little girl?" He asked, loosening his guard.

"I," Steph readied the gun behind her back, "give you permission," she pulled it out and aimed it at the guard's head, "to fuck right off." She squeezed the trigger and thanks to the silencer, he fell to the ground in a soundless heap. She did the same to the second.

She laughed at the two pathetic bodies on the floor and climbed the spiral staircase up to the top of the security tower. She skipped across the main room in glee at the thought that soon she and John were going to be reunited in paradise. And then her gaze fell upon her target. There it was, in all its glory; the instrument that was going to start the chain of events. The air raid siren. She tossed the gun aside and grabbed hold of the winch which operated the siren. She grabbed it with both hands and heaved to turn it round.

With that the siren blared, the same sound that you would have heard in London during air raids in World War Two. It rang through not only the base, but also the entire surroundings of the Brecon Beacons. Steph ran to the nearest window and listened closely. She could hear the vicious snarls of the Infected running down from the mountains. Then she was filled with more twisted joy as the floodlights were switched on and she saw the crowd heading straight for the castle.

"Right, now back to my lover." She said to herself as she retrieved her gun and climbed back down the stairs, laughing as she heard the traps outside the castle going off as the Infected ran over them. To her surprise, she wasn't met by any other guards. She found that fact quite odd; she knew full well that when the siren is raised, all guards are ordered to security balcony to fight off the intruders. Not that it mattered to her; it just made her job easier.

Back down in the courtyard, Manda, Tammy and Chrystelle were lying down on towels, chatting and listening to the band supplying entertainment.

"…And you won't believe the trouble Gavin got into when Dad found out what we had been doing. It was hilarious." Tammy laughed heavily.

"You seriously did that when you were still in school?" Manda stared in disbelief. "Mind you, it's not like I was a saint all those years ago."

Chrystelle was in a fit of laughter after Tammy's story, she could barely breath. "Come on then… spill all." She spluttered.

"No! Bugger off." Manda looked down at her empty plastic cup, which had once been filled with a ration oh wine. "I don't want to tarnish my image." She looked completely serious for about it for about ten seconds before falling into hysterics with the other two.

The night sky was clear and starry, the perfect night, but there was a feel in the air, a feel of unease. A feel that even through the laughter the crowd was secretly aware of. But no one took notice; as far as they were concerned as long as the guards were there, they were safe. Even Manda had fell into this frame of complacency. It just seemed on a night as positive and cosy as this one, nothing could possibly go awry.

"Come on Crys, tell us. What things did you get up to back in Bristol?" Tammy asked.

"Well, if you insist." Crys started. "I did once sleep with my Biology lecturer in college." She giggled. "But the less said about that, the better."

Before Manda could utter a word, there was a loud booming noise of an air raid siren. The guitars and the cheering all stopped in an instance. For a good minute, there was no sound coming from anywhere except from the siren, no one knew whether to panic or stay calm. Regardless, in their complacency they would trust that the guards would be able to sort the problem out. It stopped and everyone returned to the festivities.

"Something's not right." Manda said, looking around suspiciously. "There's no gunshots."

"Y'know what? I think you're right." Chrystelle agreed.

Tammy nodded as she scanned the area also, looking out for the different exits. "I think we should go and get Andy. Then find somewhere safe in this place." Then she noticed that one by one, the guards at the exits were all pulled in and disappeared.

"Manda, through the canteen." She said.

"But that's the long way to the hospital." Manda replied.

"You know I of all people would want to get their as quick as possible, but this time we have to avoid those entrances. Trust me. It's the Infected." Tammy ran for the canteen entrance, beckoning for Manda and Chrystelle to follow her. Giving in, they did so.

The canteen was in total darkness, Manda pulled out a torch that she had been given by the guards and switched it on. The ray of light shone onto the far wall; it revealed each speck of dust that fell to the ground. Manda understood that there was no time to dawdle; they had to find their way to the hospital wing, and fast. Although, it was hard enough to find their way around as it was in the dark, without the Infected to worry about.

"Now, both of you stay close to me. I'm the only person with a light." She instructed.

Tammy made a noise of agreement, but Chrystelle was more used to doing these things alone.

They reached the end of the canteen and stepped out into the nearby corridor. The silence had been broken by the piercing screams of the residents. The Infected were definitely in. Manda noticed a patch of light illuminating the split in the corridor ahead, meaning there was a source of light.

"Come on, let's head there." Chrystelle forced her opinion.

"No." Manda grabbed her arm to stop her. "If you go into the light, you're more exposed. Stay in the dark then at least we have a little bit of cover."

"And what makes you the fucking expert?" Chrystelle yelled in defence.

Tammy stepped between them. "She's right, Manda's right. A month ago, a friend of mine told us the same thing. And here I am, still alive."

"Let me think about this for a minute." She replied. "The chance of freedom or some kid's word… I take freedom" And she took off for the light.

Both Manda and Tammy watched as their former ally was grabbed by what looked like a dozen Infected. Not wanting to see anyone else get ripped apart, Manda ordered they both go up the stairs to their right, knowing it was the most direct route to Andy. She knew it wasn't respectful at all to Chrystelle, but she could pay her respects after they escaped.

"Just keep running Tam, keep hold of my hand and keep running." Manda puffed, their feet pounding down on the stone corridor floor. They were getting ever closer to the hospital ward, Andy, John and… she had forgotten, they were also approaching Steph. If she didn't know any better, she bet Steph was somehow responsible for all this. In fact, she was sure of it.

"But now we can be together forever." Steph pleaded. John was moving all the equipment against the door, to block it off from Infected. "Really, don't… don't do this."

Andy was now up and helping John, he was feeling almost like his normal self again. He was showing little to no side effects of infection. John pointed to the other door in his office and Andy ran off to push the bed in front of it.

"Did you have a part in this?" He questioned Steph. "Did you?"

There was a silence, Steph stood completely still and didn't say anything. She couldn't even look John in the eye.

"Oh my god, you did didn't' you? You stupid bitch."

"I did this for you. For us!" Manda tried to plead again, getting closer and holding onto John. He threw her off and she fell to the ground.

"Don't touch me!" He grimaced, looking at what was once his best friend. "You don't have that right anymore. How could you have possibly done this for… for _us_?"

"You want me to tell you the truth?" Steph got up from the floor, slowly. "Then you have to be willing to listen to the entire thing."

John agreed, relaxing a little bit. He told Andy to keep in the office out of harm's way. He sat on the floor as the beds were all piled up against the door. Steph began to tell him her feelings.

"From the day we met, all that time ago, I've wanted to say something. But I've never been able to admit to myself the truth of it. I like you. I've always liked you, and will always continue to like you. You're handsome, you're amazing (cheeky grin from John), and you're just amazing. So I've stuck with you through all this time, even through the times where neither of us was happy. And now I've decided we can be together forever." She explained. "Only if you unblock that door." In her head, this all sounded normal. She didn't realise she sounded deranged. "Then they can get in and we'll die a natural death, living on together in the afterlife."

"Stephanie," John said, "I think you're sick. You're not well. These thoughts are bizarre, more than bizarre, they're warped. I just can't handle it."

He stood up and paced around the room for a while. "You saw what happens when you get caught by the Infected. You cannot call that natural, not at all."

"And then we've got him." She glanced at John's office. "He can be our child, our readymade child. John, Steph and Andy McDonald." Her eyes glistened with a sickening sign of madness.

"You keep Andy out of this." John said sternly, detecting exactly what she meant.

His deranged colleague laughed menacingly. "Or what?" She pulled out the handgun and aimed it at John's head. "I wanted us to die naturally, me, you and Andy. Leave those other bitches behind to become Infected. But it looks like it's too late for that. Too fucking late. I'm going to shoot you, then Andy, then myself; we can be happy together, forever."

But before she could pull the trigger, she saw two figures running across the balcony to them. She noticed who they were straight away.

"Perfect." She grinned. "Andy, come here please."

He did so, running to see what she wanted. But he was greeted with something much different to what he anticipated, a handgun pressed against his head. Steph grabbed him around the neck with her other head and kept him held securely, making sure he couldn't wriggle out.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Manda screamed, out of breath.

"ANDY!" Tammy bellowed in terror.

Steph gripped the gun tight, squeezing gently on the trigger. The excitement running through her was tremendous and indescribable. Not even the constant sniffing of the reluctant to cry Andy could put her out of her stride.

"Right, nice to have you both with us. No, don't bother to speak, this is my moment." Steph introduced her plans in a sick formal manner. "John, Andy and I are going to a better place. A place where you can't find us or ruin our lives. You've already ruined them in this lifetime, but the next one will be pure. Without viruses like you. I bet you're wondering why I don't just shoot you both dead here and now. Well that's because, I wouldn't' wish you the honour. Now watch and I descend, as I go into the next life, taking these two with me."

Manda, Tammy and John looked on, horrified, as Steph released the safety on the handgun.

"See you on the other side." She whispered into Andy's ear and pulled the trigger


	11. Claustrophobia

Chapter Ten

"…What?"

There was no bang, only a click.

Andy managed to force his elbow into Steph's stomach; winding her and making her loose her grip on him. He jumped into the safety of Tammy's arms, burying his head.

"What the fu-" Steph regained her breath.

"It's out of ammo. Unlucky. Guess we'll just leave you here to the mercy of _them_." Manda suggested.

"No." John made it clear that that wasn't going to happen. "She's still my friend. I'm not leaving her to die."

He stepped forward, his arm outstretched. Almost as if he was just expecting Steph to take it and come with them. Seeing that wasn't going to happen, he edged closer slightly, making sure she didn't do anything stupid to harm anyone. He put his arms round her and tried to hold her in an embrace. But she wasn't having any of it. She pushed him away and got her feet, running to John's office. Naturally, he followed hoping he could salvage just a little bit of what she used to be.

"Look, just wait. Come with us. I can help you, we can help you." He said.

"You know what John?" Steph picked up a notepad and threw it at him. "Screw you. You've been fucking me around for too long. Either you want me or you don't. Choose. Here and now."

John wanted to say yes, but he just wasn't interested in her romantically. "I just want you to come with us." He answered finally.

Steph just shook her head and pulled the bed out the way of the old wooden door. "If I can't have you, nobody can. And let these be the last words you hear me say. You ruined my life." She said, opening the door, allowing the waiting Infected still banging on the door, to flood in.

By basic instinct, John turned around immediately and ran out the office, hearing the mutilated scream of Steph fade away along with her life. He herded the other three out onto the balcony and slammed the wooden door shut, almost breaking it. He knew that there was no way it would hold for long, but it gave them at least a small amount of time to gain some distance. But for a moment, he stopped. Looking from the balcony, he could just get a glimpse of the courtyard and the residents getting murdered by the Infected.

"Months of work, all devastated by one woman's illness." He thought aloud. "I want to destroy every memory I have of her. I never gave up on her and I always gave her another chance. And this is the way she repays me. You three go, there's an underground basement that should be a secure hiding place from the Infected."

"No." Manda grabbed his arm and made him face her, looking into his eyes. "We have had enough people giving their lives for us. It's about time that someone we met survived. And remember what we're fighting for." Both she and John looked down at Andy.

"You're right." John admitted. "I don't know what you three went through to get here, but it sounds tough. Tougher than anything I've had to do. Come on, I'll take you to the basement. It's not going to be easy though, the entrance is right on the other side of the castle. And with those things running around, it's going to be even harder."

"And we've got no weapons." Manda finished.

John thought for a few moments, trying not to get distracted by the Infected drumming on the hospital wing door.

"I know where there are some. And it's just two floors below." He suggested. "We don't have to do it. But it might make our trip a hell of a lot easier."

"Then I think it's worth a try." Andy cleared his through. He was thinking normally for the first time since London. "But what about Steph."

"We need to focus on here and now. Not linger on the past; if there's one thing this hell has taught me, it's that." He herded them towards the exit along the balcony of the castle wall.

It was a slow journey, as despite the floodlights; the only hint of light was from Manda's torch. And then she had to be careful not to shine it upon any of the Infected. Every step they took had to be carefully monitored. Andy was reminded of the time in the London underground, which he could now fully reminisce. He remembered the fear the darkness had struck in him and the fear of being all alone, without Tammy. Having her with him now, after days of being stuck in the hospital office, made him feel slightly better about the situation.

All that could be heard through the darkness was the constant screams of people being ripped apart and killed by the Infected. It was a terrifying noise, and no matter how much they heard it, none of the group could ever get used to it. The best they could do was just soldier on and try their hardest to ignore it.

Eventually, they arrived at the weapons room. John led them in, taking the first steps and shining the torch in all areas of the room. There were a couple of bodies lying on the floor, presumably dead.

"Looks like everyone else had the same idea." He said to the others. He went through the archway at the back and shone the torch all around the walls. To his horror, there was not any weapons left; all the guns, all the knives, they had all been taken by closer refugees.

"What about this?" Andy whispered.

John turned the torch and pointed it at Andy, who held what was some kind of handgun to the light.

"Perfect." John beamed and took it off the boy. "Now, this is all we have, and it presumably only has nine bullets going for it. We have to use it sparingly."

"What are we meant to do now?" Tammy asked.

"We head to the basement." He replied. "As I store some medicine there, I'm given a key. Only the General, head cook and I get one, so we should be the only people in there."

After that, he led Manda, Andy and Tammy to the basement. They were finding their way along another dark corridor, not even sure where they were now. All John had to go on was his memory of the positioning of stairways. They were managing all right and fairly calm, when they heard the snarling growls of the Infected approaching their vicinity.

"Quick, run!" John instructed, knowing that if he was in the right place, he could save at least one person, the one person that mattered most in all of this.

"Just use the gun." Andy said, unable to think of the bigger picture.

"Use it sparingly I said." John denied. "Now come on, I've got a plan."

They all cautiously ran in the direction that John shone the light. It was devilishly hard to navigate their way through the darkness, let alone run through it. But John seemed to know where he was going now, so they trusted him. Andy squinted at what John was shining the torchlight on, all he could make out was a small wooden panel on the wall a few metres down the corridor through an archway. They reached it and John pulled it open, to reveal a small space which looked like a tiny lift. Manda closed the big wooden door in the archway and locked it.

"Right Andy, I'm going to make sure you get to safety, okay?" John panted. "This will take you straight down into the basement all right? We'll follow you down once you're safe. I'll knock five times and you'll know it's us okay?"

"You don't mean… I have to go in there?" Andy stuttered. There was no way on Earth that he would want to go in such a small place, not after the experiences he had had.

John grabbed him and looked into his eyes.

"You know how special your blood is right?" He asked. Andy nodded. "You need to survive, we don't matter, but you do. Now please. It will take all of five minutes."

Andy knew he was right. There was no other way that would ensure his safety. Bravely he submitted and jumped up into the little lift. Already his heart was pumping with anxiety as his body was held in a tight ball by the walls. He was just able to lift his head a little to see the other three preparing to winch him down.

"Good luck." Manda said, kissing him on the head, before stepping back.

"I'll let Tammy winch you down if you'll feel safer?" John suggested.

"Actually, I will." Tammy pushed John out of the way, prompting Manda to stop John from having a go. "Andy. I know you don't like this anymore than I do, but it's the best way to keep you safe. Or so John says. Just remember, I'll make sure we make it down to you. I will always be there for you."

She started turning the winch of the lift, lowering it slowly, watching as her brother disappeared from view, leaving nothing but a black shaft. Despite the overwhelming odds, Tammy was sure she's see Andy again. She had to, there was no other option. She was not going to die and leave him on his own.

The lift moved incredibly slowly. It made a rumbling noise which echoed even louder in the dingy shaft that it was moving down. It was one of the most uncomfortable things that Andy had ever experienced. There was one positive to being in the lift shaft though with the loud rumbling noise, it blocked out the sounds of people screaming and dying as the Infected caught up to them.

He felt a sudden, uncontrollable itch on his back between his shoulder blades. He went to go to scratch it, but was stopped as his arm jerked back and he whacked his elbow on the roof of the lift. With this, the blood in his body started rushing to his head and he started panicking. It felt like the walls were closing in; he didn't know whether it was in his head or not, but the walls were definitely getting closer to him on both sides. His head started to hurt again, worse than when the infection was consuming him. He was sweating immensely, first the palm of his hands, then armpits and eventually, all over his body.

Then eventually, the lift stopped going down. No longer was he descending to the basement, but he was frozen, suspended in the shaft. He didn't think it could get any worse. He was very much wrong. He couldn't stop panicking; the walls just kept closing in.

"Get down the stairs!" He heard John.

"But Andy!" Tammy's voice came next.

"Don't worry about him, he'll be fine."

Hearing their voices calmed Andy somewhat. The walls started going out again and his heart steadily slowed down. There was something about Tammy's voice that instantly made him feel better. She was right, what she had said all those months ago, she was always going to be there for him. He managed to calm himself down by breathing deeply and thinking about what waited for him outside, Tammy, Manda and John; his new family. He opened his eyes and felt around the wall in front of him, to see if there was a way out. His fingers ran against what felt like hinges on one side of what must have been a door. But there was a problem, he could only feel one hinge, meaning only half of the door was available; not even he was small enough to fit through it.

He thought about what he could do to lower it. There was nothing in the lift to help him; there was only him. What could _he_ do to get himself out? Maybe if he used the little space available to "jump" and push the lift down slightly, he'd be able to get free. He tried it, no avail, it merely made a wobble. Then he tried it again. This time it fell slightly, he felt it. He tried one last time and used all of his strength. The lift jerked then moved about an inch downwards. Andy felt the door in front of him again and felt two hinges this time; he pushed against it and to his luck it opened gently.

Feeling a new sense of freedom after being stuck, Andy flung himself out, crashing to the ground. Now it was a matter of getting downstairs. Lucky for him, the corridors of the castle were almost deserted now. The Infected had probably herded to the courtyard or fled to wreak more havoc.

The giant floodlights were still working, and allowed Andy enough light to find his way to the nearest flight of stairs; they were only few metres away from the lift. He ran as fast as he could towards and down them, almost losing his footing as he did so. All he wanted was to see Tammy again, at least one more time.

The stairs led straight down to the basement door, there was no other way to go. Andy couldn't see it, but he felt his way down the little porch area to it. He went to push the door open, but it wouldn't budge. It must have meant that the others had made it and locked it. He racked his brain as to what he could do. If he just knocked, they would probably think he was one of the Infected. Then he remembered what John had said before he got into the lift, _"I'll knock five times and you'll know it's us," _he realised if he knocked five times, John might understand.

He knocked five times and just as he did, he heard a growl from behind him. He turned around but was unable to see anything in the darkness. However, he could feel. And he felt someone grab his arms and thrust him against the wall. He knew it had to be either an Infected or some crazed person. The stronger idea was an Infected, but it wasn't trying to kill him. It lent into his face so he could feel its warm breath against his cheek. He closed his eyes and mouth as he felt the thing sniffing him like a dog. If they were ever going to open the door, now would be the time to do so.

Just as he thought that, the door opened slightly and the Manda was the one to step out; she shone a torch upon Andy's attacker to reveal it was in fact an Infected. Manda looked at it wistfully and mysteriously, as if she knew why it wasn't attacking Andy, like the time back in the industrial park. She raised the handgun and shot a bullet straight through its head. She moved forwards and led Andy in.

"Are you all right?" She asked, making sure no blood got into his system.

"Yeah, I am thanks to you." He replied and smiled at her, not that she could see it.

"Andy!" Tamm squealed as both her and John had made their way over.

"You were really brave to make it down here on your own." John said as he sat Andy down. "We were really worried when we got down here and winched the lift down to see you gone-"

"We didn't know if you'd made it or not." Tammy butted in. "I'm never going to put you in that kind of situation again."

That was the last thing said on the matter. Andy and Tammy were left to reconcile on the matter and they soon fell asleep peacefully; leaving Manda and John awake. They had collected stones from the floor and rearranged them into three small crosses on the floor, and then in the centre of them they had made a bigger cross.

"These are to mourn the passing of our fallen friends, brothers, sisters, parents and everyone else." John said. "Especially to those more recently, Gerran Davies, Chrystelle Alomar, Stephanie Perry, and… Manda, anyone you want to mention?"

Manda took the torch off him and kneeled in front of the memorial.

"Yes, PC Rhys Howell, Sergeant Flynn Stone, Clive Johnstone and… my husband, Ethan Simmonds."

She didn't know what else to say, so for the rest of the night, both she and John sat in silence, acknowledging the deaths that had got them where they were.


	12. Epilogue

Epilogue

Andy opened his eyes. Bizarrely despite them being in a basement, there was light shining in and everything was fully visible. He got up and scanned the room, noticing that only he and John were still there. He took a deep breath and as he inhaled, he noticed a distinct smell enter his nostrils. It was the smell of something burning. He nudged John and explained what he could smell. John agreed and told him he could smell it as well.

"Are you two awake yet?" Tammy's voice rattled from the door. "You need to see this!"

With that, both Andy and John shot up off the floor and darted outside. The smell got stronger and John looked between Manda and Tammy's shocked faces. He wondered what could be so shocking, considering the kind of world they were living in. He turned around and his eyes widened at the horrific sight. The burning smell was coming from a funnel of black smoke pouring from the centre of the castle. Which could mean only one thing, the castle was on fire.

"What the…" John staggered forwards, his eyes fixed on the burning castle.

"It was the Americans." Tammy answered. "This is exactly what they did in London."

"They must have been burning the Infected out. I heard they did the same thing in highlands a month ago." John confirmed.

Manda tugged at his shoulder, trying to get him to come away. She was much harder than him. She had lost so much that she had learned to readjust to change quicker. Whereas John had been stuck in a state of complacency in the castle for so long, he had forgotten what it was like to have to keep on the move. "We have to go, come on."

"Go where exactly?" John snapped. "Where are we meant to go? If the Americans don't find us, the Infected will."

Tammy and Andy stood in between the two of them. Tammy got out the leaflet that she had picked up from the department store. She thrust it into John's hand and pointed at the writing.

"Cardiff." She said. "There's a boat waiting to leave. If we make it, we could be out of here."

John took a moment to consider it, but in his position, he couldn't really say no.

"Yeah, okay then. It's worth a try." He replied. He had his doubts, but at least the journey would help him look forwards towards his new life with Manda and the kids. He gave the leaflet back to Tammy and tried to force a smile.

Now they were decided, Manda led the way down the first major hill of the Brecon Beacons. They had almost 35 miles to cover before nightfall; it wasn't going to be easy especially with the Americans tracing their every move.

**And there we have it. Another four months in the planning. I hope everyone who took the time to read it enjoyed it as well as The Cure Carrier.  
I have a big special thank you to say to Joanne Langford, without whom I would never have done this.  
Also, I'm going to take a short break from writing now, but I shall be starting to write the final part, 28 Weeks Later: Requiem sometime soon. **


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